Quickie on UK law

Talk about whatever

4 posts • Page 1 of 1

Postby Flash » Thu Aug 17, 2006 10:54 am

Anyone happen to know weather wardriving is legal in the uk ??

If no one knows i'll ask some questions on a few legal sites and see what they say.. I can't see as it is illegal as radio is free and legal to listen to..

Postby ax0n » Thu Aug 17, 2006 1:22 pm

I'm pretty sure that there haven't been any specific laws targeting logging of wireless access points. If that's the case, if you don't associate to networks that you don't have permission to use, you should be in the clear. KisMAC, Kismet, BSD-Airtools, NetStumbler, Ministumbler and most others DO NOT associate by default.

Make sure if you're using Windows or MacOS X to tell it to not auto-join the first available network.

That said, the bobbies will probably wonder what it is that you're doing if you're sitting there with a high-gain omni stuck to the boot, and your passenger seat is loaded with GPS, wireless, and computer equipment if they ever have to stop you for anything.

Postby argh » Sun Aug 20, 2006 5:45 am

IANAL (i am not a lawyer), but the legality will vary from place to place. Kismet will never transmit, and as you mentioned, radio should be/is free to listen to. although i have not used them, i think most of the *stumbler variants transmit on all channels to any/all APs that can hear it, and then listen for the replies.

associating with an AP is completely beyond (below?) what wardriving is about.

if you have a GPS/laptop/PDA in the vehicle, lots of wires/laptop/inverters(use DC instead!), and antennae, you should have GPS mapping software running.

since every new car in most of the world can have an integral GPS, you could/should be able to kill your wardriving software in a few seconds, and leave a live map of your current location up. some countries/states may have laws about a laptop/PDA in front of the driver, but if questioned, a good reply may be "I just purchased this new GPS sir, and I am having my co-pilot (always a good idea) help me map this area. I am an amateur cartographer". do not try to hide or cover up equipment if you are pulled over while driving.

be polite to the officer. turn off logging a data dump before the drive if it is available in your wardriving software. do _not_ pull over and 'check your email'. that is illegal in most parts of the world.

Postby chester013 » Wed Jun 24, 2009 8:05 am

Wardriving is not illegal in the UK, logging is cool accessing the net is not like in many other countries.

I dont think it's mentioned in the computer misuse act 1990 but piggybacking is, just be careful when driving and operating equipment.

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