Wi-Fi Alliance raises security concerns over Boris's mega-hotspot

Dave Bailey, Computing, Wednesday 2 June 2010 at 18:11:00

Says users should avoid using city-wide network for banking or business
purposes

The Wi-Fi Alliance has warned that the
future London-wide wireless network proposed by Mayor Boris Johnson recently
might not be fit for business or banking use.

Mayor Johnson announced blanket Wi-Fi coverage for London at a recent Google
event in Hertfordshire, saying that every lamppost and bus stop would enable
wireless access by the time of the 2012 London Olympics.

Speaking to Computing, senior Wi-Fi Alliance executive Kelly
Davis-Felner said: "Freely available Wi-Fi is terrific, but not for business
communications. For that you need to use a virtual private network (VPN) or a
network with security protections, and the same is true of banking."

Davis-Felner added that if she was advising Johnson on his Wi-Fi vision she
would recommend the deployment of an 802.11n network, arguing that such a
dual-band infrastructure (operating in frequencies of 2.4GHz and 5GHz) would
alleviate possible congestion issues and give better range than the earlier
802.11 a/b/g standards. The 802.11n standard also gives performance of
100Mbit/s.

Currently 22 London boroughs have signed up to the WiFi London scheme,
although pricing has yet to be detailed.

Full story at http://www.computing.co.uk/computing/news/2264041/wi-alliance-advises-caution