Would you share your wireless network with neighbors?

[jessmarimba]

We did this in college - four of us in adjoining apartments split one wireless connection. But we were really poor, and none of us had anything really sensitive on our computers at the time (and this was before all of the online banking and bill pay and everything really caught on). Now, I'm not sure. It would depend on the people.

[Blueberry]

I'm pretty sure this is a violation of most terms of service agreements. i.e. - if the internet provider found out, you might have an issue (cancel service, fines - depends on what their agreement says). Aside from not having moral issues, you should investigate to see if it could cause problems for you.

I would also be wary of 1) slowing down the network and 2) what if they (or their guests) accidentally do something illegal (or intentionally - but that's a whole 'nother issue).

Since they're your landlords, I feel like they've put you in sort of an odd position. I know I wouldn't do it - heck, we created a separate guest network (with less access) to use with 1) less trusted devices and 2) with guests (we love 'em but....).

[Triskeliongirl]

Unless you really need the money I wouldn't do it. In addition to all of the other points made, I would worry that if they are streaming a movie or vice versa, it will make it impossible for the other household to do anything. Also, we found that even if a router can support a lot of devices, when our kids visit, and add extra laptops, mobile phones, and tablets, we experience severe network problems. I do not think these home networks can handle the traffic of many devices. So if you want a way out or feel awkward since they are your landlords, just tell them your router is already maxed out and cannot handle any additional devices.

[Koronin]

No, for several reasons, the banking/monetary transactions being one good one. Another is that some types of computer viruses/trojans actually can get into one computer and get transferred through a network to other computers. Unfortunately I got one of those on my computer. Thankfully we caught it as soon as it showed up and my husband was able to get rid of it, but if it was one that could have not only effected other devices hooked up to the network, but the router and modem as well.
Also if they download large files it will slow your connection down.