UK number two ISP TalkTalk has staged a wireless stunt, aimed at illustrating why government to disconnect filesharers is “naive”.

The stunt demonstratration showed how innocent people could be disconnected from the network if the plans become law.

In order to illustrate the point Matt Roxburgh, a security expert from TalkTalk, visited an ordinary street and within a couple of hours he had identified 23 wireless connections which were unsecured. He downloaded music files from two connections, in both cases, the residents had given prior permission to “be hacked” and the content downloaded was legal. TalkTalk plans to offer advice to all residents about how to secure their wi-fi networks.

The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) remains confident that its “robust” evidence-gathering system will not allow innocent people to be caught in the net in the same way as has happened in the video game industry. For those who have had their wi-fi connection hacked into, there would be no immediate threat of disconnection, said BPI spokesman Adam Liversage. “The account holder would receive a notification in the first instance, which would represent an opportunity to discuss filesharing with others in the household and which would provide the account holder with the information and tools to help ensure that the account is not used illegally again,” he said.

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