Is Windows 10 WiFi Sense Nonsense? - Comments Page 1

So, the list of Opt Out features (bad ones) continues to grow as with my list of bad companies to not do business with. Oh well, back to rock, hammer, chisel I guess.

I haven't read the entire article yet, but just reading the first few paragraphs scares me to death. I don't want anything shared with anyone else unless I give them the information. I will definitely disable WiFi. Thank you for sending out this newsletter.

Bob:
Thanks for clearing up the reason for all the cars parked across the street. I'll be disabling the WiFi Nonsense.
Michael

YIKES! I didn't know this and I'm turning off my WIFI Sense on my Nokia Windows Phone as I write this and also I'm going to check to see if it's on my laptop with Windows 10 preview I've been testing since February!!!!
Thanks for the info!

I have a different approach. I am sticking with Win7. Before my computer was fried by a virus some years ago, I was sticking with WinXP, SP3. Sigh. Thank you, Bob.

Thank you Bob for bringing this to our attention, your vigilance is appreciated.

Another concern of mine is that some providers allow reciprocal wireless access to any of their customers who happen to be nearby other customers who rent their modem/router from the provider. They can just go ahead and use the wi-fi at that home whenever they wish to.

I don't want anyone outside my home to have unfettered access to my wireless service.

When I start to use Windows 10 I will disable this "feature" for sure.

P'haps what is meant by "your contacts" needs to be contextually defined...
B'cuz I am wondering if Microsoft is actually contacting NSA on my behalf and appropriating "my contacts" directly from NSA servers [who may possibly even know all my other 'metadata'; including my shoe-size and if I put my right sock on before the left one!] Okay, maybe I am exaggerating a bit, since NSA ONLY knows my data prior to the past 6 months, unless there was an official court request for my recent data, that I am not aware of.

Between our SSID (not broadcast) and our WiFi key, there are 192 characters that I regularly give out to friends and family, if they want to join our network. Thinking there might be some security there somewhere, it never dawned on me that might be considered a problem, requiring attention from Microsoft. Since we also have MAC-filtering turned on in our router settings, until I enter users' specific device-numbers into our white-list, am guessing many of our Microsoft-enabled "Friends" will still be outside, looking in.

Thanks for the warning Bob . I am using W10 as part of the Insider Program and had not appreciated this feature. I only wish to give access to my wifi network personally to people I know and trust. Ok they can then keep it to use again or even pass it on but that is part of the trust element.

I don't trust Microsoft any more than I trust the government. If the keys are stored on a remote Microsoft server, then the government will also have free access to them.

So just to clarify, EVERYONE (including those of us who would never think of allowing a Microsoft device into our home) who would perfer to not want to offer their Wi-fi to every tom dick and harry has to change their Wifi network name from for example "FredsHouse" to "FredsHouse_optout" and then systematically change that string on all their devices (probably by setting everything Wifi up again as the network name can't be changed in most software) just to get back to the same security and functionality that they had before? Then explain what the -optout nonsense is all about?

EDITOR'S NOTE: If you have no devices in your home running Windows 10 or Windows 10 Phone, then you don't need to do anything.

Like a previous poster named Bob, I also have a Nokia Windows phone, which I absolutely love,BTW, running Windows 8.1. I have always operated it with the WiFi Sense turned OFF though. Mainly, this was because I didn't really know what WiFi Sense was or what it did. So thank you, Bob Rankin, for your excellent explanation, as always. Now I am even happier that I never enabled WiFi Sense on my phone. I am currently running Win7 on my laptop, but I will certainly be disabling WiFi Sense on my laptop too, once Windows 10 is installed.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! If I give my business wifi passphrase to someone, now I have to trust them to disable this "service" on all of their devices? As of right now, I'm advising all of my clients to get rid of all WiFi access points that allow access to their network. Tell me how this doesn't kill WiFi for business use?

I was skeptical of Windows 10 before. Now I'll definitely avoid installing it on our computers. We paid extra to get Windows 7 instead of Windows 8.1 on our new computers, and I intend to keep it that way.

Sure glad I have 4 Win 7 computers. Maybe by 2020 MS will come back to reality. If they are still in business.

This has made me realize something basic: WiFi "security" is a myth anyway, because a password that's shared among multiple people isn't secure to begin with; it might as well be shared with everyone. "A secret shared with one other person isn't a secret anymore." WiFi isn't secure unless and until it's based on a unique password for each user; a password that only that one user knows. But still, what possessed Microsoft to throw a grenade into the party?

This sounds like very poor common sense on the part of Microsoft. One more reason to stick with Win 7 while learning to use Linux. It has been my opinion for quite some time that Microsoft fits the basic definition a bully. "You will do it my way or else. Why should we disclose something and make a plain and obvious way to disable it; or even turn it off by default, rather than on by default." As designed by Microsoft, WiFi Sense makes no sense!

Thanks, Bob. THIS is exactly why I subscribe to your service. You are like the good friend who politely informs you that the back panel of your log johns is unbuttoned!

Another reason why my computers are hard wired. I only have entertainment devices like Roku and Smart TV's connected to WiFi.

Whilst I deem wifi to be 100% insecure yet am prepared to take that risk especially sitting in a cafe for a few minutes doing emails; my shock and horror right now is the realisation that with W10 Microsoft will now be creating a HUGE database of ip addresses, email addresses, SSIDs, and passwords etc., etc. No wonder they're giving out W10 for free.