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Wi-Fi for Free?
People using their neighbor's wi-fi signal for free.


(CBS) NEW YORK High-speed internet access costs about $50-dollars a month, but what if you could surf for free? Emily Conrad doesn't pay a dime for her internet connection. She uses her neighbor's wi-fi signal for free.

"The people who have their networks open, they're a great asset to us," says Emily.

People have been stealing, or borrowing their neighbor's wireless connection for years. But with more people now signing up for wireless, it's getting even easier to piggy-back on a signal someone else pays for. A recent Jupiter Research poll revealed 14 percent of wi-fi users admit using a neighbor's connection.

It's costing internet providers customers, but Emily says she doesn't feel sorry for them.

"I think they're looking after their own interest in the same way we are," says Emily.

In densely populated areas, it's easy to take advantage of someone else's wireless connection. Inside a Manhattan apartment, you can find several connections which could be coming from any unit inside this high rise apartment building.

And now, a growing number of websites advertise how to share a high speed connection. Neighbornode.Net can turn any laptop into a virtual hotspot. Mohit Santram opens his high speed connection so his Lower Eastside neighbors can surf for free.

"Free wi-fi access to people is really crucial because youre opening doors for people," says Mohit. "And you're giving them access to knowledge and giving everyone access to the internet is only going to help society."

Rob Bernstein is editor of the trend magazine, Sync. He says two years ago, Time Warner Cable went after customers who shared their high speed connection. And now many companies have policies against it.

"This is something they don't want to see out there," Rob says. "They make money on every subion so if people are giving it away, that's a problem."

Officials at Time Warner, Verizon, and Earthlink didn't want to talk on camera, but they all said over the phone, they don't see this as a problem.

But internet security consultant, John Pironti says opening your internet connection to strangers could threaten your computer. Even using a stranger's wireless connection could infect your system with viruses or worms.

"It's like having a neighbor sitting right next to you with a computer," says John, an internet security consultant with Unisys. "They can actually touch your computer, access your computer, they have closer levels of cability to find your computer. "

Many legal analysts say borrowing or stealing a person's internet access is difficult to prosecute, but they all warn if someone breaks the law using your connection, it will trace back to your computer.

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