Good grief. It's illegal to steal wireless access. There's been news reports in the paper and on TV. It's been discussed on morning radio and posted about in thousands of internet forums. It is therefore expected that any reasonable person is aware of the illegality of using someone elses internet, either by design or by accident.
It is not a reasonable expectation that people secure their access points. Many wireless routers were supplied to non-tech-savvy individuals to "get their laptop on the internet". To them, their wireless router is "the little box thing that does my internet". It is not reasonable to assume "these people are asking for it", despite the attraction of such a viewpoint!
Someone caught stealing wireless by accident should be given a warning and told not to do it again and indeed I'm sure this is precisely what happens in the vast majority of cases. There will, of course, be coppers out there who wil throw the book at someone for the slightest breach (remember the girl who was charged with criminal damage because she picked a flower outside a pub?), but most will use their common-sense (and avoid the paperwork).
The bloke we're talking about deserved what he got. He was being malicious and calculating in his intent to procure a service he was not entitled to.
It is not a reasonable expectation that people secure their access points. Many wireless routers were supplied to non-tech-savvy individuals to "get their laptop on the internet". To them, their wireless router is "the little box thing that does my internet". It is not reasonable to assume "these people are asking for it", despite the attraction of such a viewpoint!
Someone caught stealing wireless by accident should be given a warning and told not to do it again and indeed I'm sure this is precisely what happens in the vast majority of cases. There will, of course, be coppers out there who wil throw the book at someone for the slightest breach (remember the girl who was charged with criminal damage because she picked a flower outside a pub?), but most will use their common-sense (and avoid the paperwork).
The bloke we're talking about deserved what he got. He was being malicious and calculating in his intent to procure a service he was not entitled to.