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Worried About Skyhook Mapping Your Wifi Router To a GeoLocation?

Started by creeva · 10 ヶ月 ago

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I was reading a story on slashdot about how Skyhook Wireless has been wardriving the United States mapping MAC addresses from the wireless routers it detects to your geographic location.   Now first for those paranoid, they probably are not going to get your exact ... Continue reading »

6 comments

  • John

    9 ヶ月 ago

    I have been to a McDonald's in Manhattan just not that one.
    reply
  • creeva

    9 ヶ月 ago

    did you know they deliver in Manhattan?
    reply
  • shokk

    9 ヶ月 ago

    When you change you MAC to fool Skhhook you are just one of hundreds of APs in your neighborhood. Considering that many people still don't change the default admin settings on their router, your bit of subversion is only as effective as the radius of your AP.
    reply
  • creeva

    9 ヶ月 ago

    Isn't that the point though - I wasn't going through stating that everyone should change and break the skyhook API - just if your worried about the geolocation information of your own API.
    reply
  • shokk

    9 ヶ月 ago

    Just seems like a lot of tinfoil hat motions to hide your AP MAC.
    reply
  • creeva

    9 ヶ月 ago

    I don't nec. disagree with you - it took me much longer to write the article then it would have been to come up with the idea of doing this and make the change.

    In theory my one AP is newer and prob. is not in the database, if my other API's are in the database it will probably say the wrong state depending on when they passed through - pre or post move to my current location.

    Either way - I can change, I know how to change, and if I am inclined I can do it in under a minute.

    What the real point of this article was everyone was going WAY overboard and overthinking this issue and solutions to remove their own AP's from teh database. If they don't like the database or have a grudge against, my solution is simple and sweet. The geo loc. data they get from your MAC is wrong - but like you pointed out if they want the information they can just walk down the street and pick up a different one.

    There is no reason I have to be altruistic and give out my geo loc. information just because someone didn't buy a device with a GPS in it. That's really the issue though right? When geo location applications become more refined we will just be using GPS chips in all of our devices anyways? At that point the skyhook database should eventually die off. It's a stop gap until the GPS chip itself takes over.
    reply

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