To ask if you know this reason why strangers may be hanging about outside your home?

[ATadShocked]

NC as I have spoken to people about this IRL.

I didn't know until very recently that our home broadband hub in our hallway is also being used as a public wi-fi hotspot by other passing BT/EE customers - did you?!

If, like me, you didn't know that and have noticed strangers hanging about outside your home with their phones then this may be the reason. I had assumed all the hotspots were in businesses or via masts, so I was a bit perturbed when I found out by accident that our hub was a hotspot. I would have liked to have been asked first. You can opt out, but only if you don't want to use other BT/EE hotspots yourself.

YABU: Yes, I knew my hub was also a public wi-fi hotspot and I don't mind

YANBU: No, I didn't know and I don't like the idea or I should at least have been asked to opt in

Thanks, @ColleenDonaghy and @HappiestSleeping. I understood the concept that my usage is prioritised but do you know how that works in practice? For example, is there a limit to how much of my bandwidth is allocated to me if the hotspot is in use by multiple users, how is the bandwidth divided up, what happens if more devices are connected to my router than it can handle (it’s quite old and the limit on device numbers is a lot lower than newer routers), is it instantaneous?

I do indeed live by a tourist hotspot in Central London 😂 And there is hotel that charges for Wi-Fi next door. I would guess that is exactly the kind of scenario where people might use a free hotspot rather than their own data to watch Netflix…

I shall try switching the hotspot off to see if that solves my bandwidth issues.

Ah, next door to a hotel I'd definitely try turning it off! Not sure it'll work but if you don't depend on it yourself when out and about there's no downside to trying.

They can't get it for free

This is old, old news, and yes - it was very much made clear in the documentation when I was with BT. You can choose to be part of (I think it is or was called Openzone?) or choose not to. If you opt out, then you don’t get the benefit of using other hotspots.

I believe there is a way around it by saying you’ll do it but then using your own router which then doesn’t allow it… but not sure how! Either way, it doesn’t affect your usage or security so it doesn’t really matter. I certainly never had anyone loitering outside my house 😂

It doesn't work in the way you might think. Let's say you are looking at a website. You will type in the URL, say bbc.co.uk, your computer will send a request message (very small), and the server the other end will send back the raw code to your browser which contains all the information for your browser to build the Web page you requested. This is also a relatively small amount of data. The browser you are using then constructs the page using the code it has been sent. You could have many users doing this over your connection and you'd probably never even notice. How the prioritisation works is this: you essentially have two networks, your own, and the public one. Let's say you request a Web page on your own private network at the exact same instant that someone on the public one does. The router sends your request first, and queues the other one for however many microseconds it needs to. Ditto the response.

Doesn't matter how many users there are this will be the same principle so you would never really even know.

This system worked fine when it was originally conceived as the majority of Internet traffic was Web pages. Problem now though is that more people stream video, which in turn is more bandwidth intensive, so there would need to be fewer people all on at the same time in order that it becomes noticeable.

To counter this, there are fair use policies which prevent streaming from those public connections, and additionally the prioritisation of your traffic over anyone on the public part would probably make streaming untenable as there would be too much buffering. It's unlikely that anyone is standing outside your house watching a film, but they could conceivably be in the hotel next door attempting to. Most hotels these days have their own free WiFi though.

So the entire bandwidth is essentially shared, but your traffic is prioritised over anyone else. I can explain further if you would like?

Just to answer a few points and questions:

There isn't really another explanation here for why strangers are loitering outside or sitting in their cars and vans for ages on their phones. It is concerning as it's not the norm around here, they are usually men, and people do worry about burglaries and car thefts. Sometimes they sit there with their engines running and polluting the air for an hour or more.

We live in the countryside in a fairly quiet place. Neighbours may stop for a chat with each other when walking the dog or on their way to the little shop, school or whatever. We get some walkers passing by who sometimes briefly stop to tie their shoelaces or consult a map. We get a few tourists who sometimes sit on the bench nearby for a while. Other than that it is people driving through down on the main road, visiting the pub down there or diverting in to come up to the little shop or small primary school.

I'm told that there's a map of local hotspots and our hub will be on that. I think a pp said that she has the BT app and so her phone picks up any local hotspots too.

I understand that some pps may not notice if they also have a lot of people around in their street waiting for buses or taxis or visiting businesses and so on.

as far as im aware the general publics wifi are not hotspots unless you set the settings to a hotspot, as for people most would be using their own data,

there is a bt one i believe but that got took over by EE, usually the main hot spots ive used before are cafes,pubs, etc

Don't you have a security pass word on your server? Noone can use our WiFi without putting the password in. I'm confused about how your WiFi could be used as an open WiFi hub

Erm sorry if you know about tech you would know they ask you when you discuss a contract and also even once it's started you just pop into your account stick password and privacy etc on and then your not sharing as a hot spot. You will find the majority of networks that show on a WiFi search when you actually click will ask for the sign in details otherwise you can't use them. Only the official hot spots or people who haven't a clue about making there hub private will allow you to log on. Hope this helps and get your settings sorted or someone to help with it :-)

@Thedance, @Ladyj84 and others - The hotspots are completely separate to your home wifi, and have no effect upon it. So BT customers have their wifi protected, but their hubs also create small hotspots that are open for anyone on the BT or EE networks (they have to sign into their accounts to use them).

It really isn't a problem - I certainly haven't had people lurking outside my house. there aren't many people who want to sit outside a random house to use their hotspot when there are so many better places to get wifi access.

I use a BT hotspot at work though - think it's someone's house, as it only works at one end of the building.

@Ladyj84 and @Thedance this isn't about OP securing her network with a password. With BT you have always been able to get WiFi when out and about through other people's connections. This will appear on the list of networks as "BT WiFi" or similar rather than BT ABC 123 which is an individual household's secured network. This allows other BT customers to access the internet but not OP's household network.

More details are explained upthread.

I'm told the hotspots are going to appear as EE Wi-Fi rather than BT Wi-Fi from now on, ColleenDonaghy.

there aren't many people who want to sit outside a random house to use their hotspot when there are so many better places to get wifi access.

Perhaps some people don't want to have to buy a coffee, a beer or a McDonald's for the free Wi-Fi access, or can't afford to, ChristmasFluff. In some areas those better places may not exist or are few and far between. Other people will want to use the 'free' BT/EE Wi-Fi hotspot like our hub because they believe they've already paid for it in their broadband/phone package. Examples have been given by pps, including about using it when living in a van, waiting for DC to come out of school, and by on the road tradesmen hiding from customers and home.

Drug dealer next door?

Other people will want to use the 'free' BT/EE Wi-Fi hotspot like our hub because they believe they've already paid for it in their broadband/phone package.

They have! As have you. It's a perk of your package. If people outside your house are bothering you and you don't use the feature yourself, then turn it off.

They claim to be selling their excess garden fruit and veg and the Parish Magazine, but you might be on to something...

It's always been that way.

When I was with BT ten odd years ago, the perk was you could tether to other BT users as a hot spot, free of charge, to save your roaming data.

If people outside your house are bothering you and you don't use the feature yourself, then turn it off.

I have finally managed to get BT/EE to opt our hub out but it can take up to 28 days to end. You must have missed my post ColleenDonaghy.

I didn’t know this was a thing. I’ve opted out now. I don’t like the idea of strangers connecting to my router. It’s mine, for my personal use, I don’t want strangers taking up my bandwidth. Also it seems like it must be a security risk if they can connect to my router.

I don’t like the idea of strangers connecting to my router. It’s mine, for my personal use,...Also it seems like it must be a security risk if they can connect to my router.

As well as not wanting strangers hanging about outside our home, this is part of my concern, Lumiodes.

Does it make it any more likely that our hub and devices could be hacked?

I'm sure that the majority of people who are using our hub as a hotspot are perfectly decent people. But what about those who aren't? Who maybe don't want to use the wi-fi in a public place like a café or at home because they are accessing things they shouldn't, like CSA images, extreme porn or the dark web? Who think that in their car on a stranger's home hub hotspot is more anonymous and secretive?

This has been answered multiple times on the thread. It doesn't affect your bandwidth because your traffic is given priority, and it's not a security risk because it's a completely separate network.

I'm sure that the majority of people who are using our hub as a hotspot are perfectly decent people. But what about those who aren't? Who maybe don't want to use the wi-fi in a public place like a café or at home because they are accessing things they shouldn't, like CSA images, extreme porn or the dark web? Who think that in their car on a stranger's home hub hotspot is more anonymous and secretive?

No it's not, because you don't have to provide any identifying details if you use a café free WiFi. But you do have to use your own BT login details to use a hotspot like yours.

Your concerns are completely valid. Allowing strangers to connect to your router can indeed pose security risks. While it's true that the majority of people using your hub as a hotspot might be decent, there's always the possibility of malicious actors trying to exploit vulnerabilities.

When strangers connect to your router, they essentially become part of your network. This means they could potentially access shared files, devices, or even launch attacks against your network. Additionally, if someone with malicious intent gains access to your network through the public hotspot feature, they could potentially compromise your personal information or launch attacks on other devices connected to your network.

In terms of the likelihood of your hub and devices being hacked, enabling the public hotspot feature does increase the potential attack surface. It's essential to ensure that your router's firmware is up to date, use strong and unique passwords for your network, and consider implementing additional security measures such as firewall rules or network segmentation to protect your devices.

If you're uncomfortable with the idea of strangers connecting to your router, you may want to consider disabling the public hotspot feature or adjusting its settings to limit access. Your privacy and security should always come first.

You must live in a popular location op. BT have always used all their customers routers as hotspots, don’t ever recall people huddling outside mine to use mine though.