Anti-Wi-Fi Theft: Answer is "Paint"

[1] Our wireless Linksys compact router used to operate with no security encryption. I knew nobody is trying to steal my internet connection. But later on, I have observed that my internet connection is getting a bit slower. And if I run the connection on a single PC, bypassing the network, it is perfectly fine.

So there, someone is getting a free internet connection, and I am paying for their usage. I tapped my brother's assistance to configure the password and encryption and now my router is secure. Secure your router now

[2] I came across this Y! article this morning and this sounds very cool and helpful.

Anti-Wi-Fi Paint

From Yahoo!

The idea is simple: Use a special paint on walls where you don't want wireless to pass through (say the exterior of your house). The secret is mixing aluminum-iron oxide particles in with the paint. The metal particles resonate at the same frequency as Wi-Fi and other radio waves, so signals can't pass through the thin layer of pigment. Outsiders would simply be unable to access your wireless network, just as you, inside the house, won't be able to interlope on anything beamed on the outside.

Developed by the University of Tokyo, the paint is said to be the first that can block radio frequency in higher spectra where Wi-Fi and other higher-bandwidth communications occur rather than just low-frequency wireless like FM radio. Most Wi-Fi technologies operate at 2.4GHz; the Tokyo paint can reportedly block frequencies all the way up to 100GHz, with a 200GHz-blocking paint now in the works.

The paint isn't just of interest to those concerned about wireless leaking out of the building. Movie theaters have long been interested in finding a legal way to keep cell phones silent during screenings. Electronic jammers that actively block wireless signals are illegal, but passive materials that prevent wireless signals from getting through are not. Since the wireless-blocking paint can also block the lower-frequency signals that cell phones use, addled mobile junkies would have no outlet for reaching the outside world.

But, in my opinion, securing a router password is still the best thing to do. This idea could not be 100% effective.