In the eyes of the law, "stealing" WiFi is at roughly the same level as child abduction or murder. In a story that brings to mind the phrase "shouldn't you be out catching real criminals?", police in Chiswick, London arrested a 39 year old man suspected of leeching an unsecured WiFi signal.
The gap between the public view and the legal view was sharply illustrated: The perp was sitting on a wall, making no attempt to hide his actions. He even told police officers what he was up to when asked. The cops, on the other hand, took a typically humorless stance: "This arrest should act as a warning to anyone who thinks it is acceptable to illegally use other people's broadband connections" said Detective Constable Mark Roberts, of the Metropolitan Police.
The accused currently on bail, awaiting a November 11th hearing. So if you're "borrowing" your neighbor's internet connection, watch out
Briton held over wireless broadband "theft" [Reuters].
