Sitting in a car across the street from their house, I stole $312,753.49 from someone’s bank account, and the guy didn’t even realize what had happened for 18 days.

It took me about three hours to break his wireless password. That was the easy part.

The rest took all night and I didn’t finish until sun rise the following morning. But once I was done, speeding away down the road in search of the tallest coffee I could find, I thought back on just how dangerously easy this had all been. I’d snatched my target’s Access Point out of the air and quickly set about attacking the password to connect. After I had cracked the password, I snooped around his home network for awhile. And then, I did what I had come to do. Some quick TCP voodoo, and I owned the network. When the guy finally logged into his bank account from home sometime around 5 AM, I had his username and password probably before the bank page even loaded for him. It was by far the sexiest digital caper I’d ever pulled off.

Of course, I did all of this as a paid security consultant, and I did all of it with the full cooperation with the individual in question (this particular individual had founded the bank I snatched the money from, and had given me full permission to try and access any accounts he had). Those were our rules of engagement. I took him up on that.

Since that time the wireless security landscape has changed a whole lot. New encryption methods are securing wireless access points all across the world, but there are new hacking tools popping up on a daily basis to break these devices.

It’s a new arms race. The first ‘hackers’ were ‘script kiddies’ appearing in the early days of the internet, unskilled individuals who would copy & paste code usually with little understanding of their actions, their only intention was a form of digital vandalism. Today’s hackers are highly organised crime gangs; they have call centers, they put out job adverts, they have affiliate programs. Ransomware attacks have shut down major infrastructure and healthcare networks across the globe and they are growing every year. The need for defensive security has never been greater.

We offer open information for security consultants and internet users. Security consultants are the front-line defenders against wireless attacks such as the one mentioned above. And, while a bank heist is an extreme example, think about any intruder on your home network and just what they may be able to do, or find. I believe that open information leads to greater self awareness, and that maybe all of us can begin taking the steps to secure and protect our interconnected world.

All the information and guides on this website are intended for security professionals and are provided for defensive purposes only. The administrator of this website does not encourage, condone, promote, or attempt to facilitate any illegal activity. You must only attempt to gain access to a WiFi (wireless) network using the tools and techinques on this website if you are either the sole account holder, owner of the equipment (routers), or have full permission in a professional capacity. Even with these prerequisites, you should check the laws and regulations in your country or jurisdiction.