Windows 10 Shares Your Wi-Fi With Contacts

[InfoSec News <alerts () infosecnews org>]

http://krebsonsecurity.com/2015/07/windows-10-shares-your-wi-fi-with-contacts/

By Brian Krebs
Krebs on Security
July 29, 2015

Starting today, Microsoft is offering most Windows 7 and Windows 8 users a 
free upgrade to the software giant’s latest operating system — Windows 10. 
But there’s a very important security caveat that users should know about 
before transitioning to the new OS: Unless you opt out, Windows 10 will by 
default share your Wi-Fi network password with any contacts you may have 
listed in Outlook and Skype — and, with an opt-in, your Facebook friends.

This brilliant new feature, which Microsoft has dubbed Wi-Fi Sense, 
doesn’t share your WiFi network password per se — it shares an encrypted 
version of that password. But it does allow anyone in your Skype or 
Outlook or Hotmail contacts lists to waltz onto your Wi-Fi network — 
should they ever wander within range of it or visit your home (or hop onto 
it secretly from hundreds of yards away with a good ‘ole cantenna!).

I first read about this disaster waiting to happen over at The Register, 
which noted that Microsoft’s Wi-Fi Sense FAQ seeks to reassure would-be 
Windows 10 users that the Wi-Fi password will be sent encrypted and stored 
encrypted — on a Microsoft server. According to PCGamer, if you use 
Windows 10’s “Express” settings during installation, Wi-Fi Sense is 
enabled by default.

[...]

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