Windows 10 will share your Wi-Fi key with your friends' friends

[Arachno 1D]

 

A Windows 10 feature, Wi-Fi Sense, smells like a security risk: it shares Wi-Fi passwords with the user's contacts.

Wi-Fi Sense has been on Windows Phone since 8.1

Those contacts include their Outlook.com (nee Hotmail) contacts, Skype contacts and, with an opt-in, their Facebook friends. There is method in the Microsoft madness

[Argi]

Share wifi networks I select

 

Asiide from the quote, I think you're getting worked up about something that hasn't shown that it's an issue.  My corporate wifi requires domain creds which would of course not be included in this.  There are likely to be some group policies around this.

[theyarecomingforyou]

Seems like a sensible, useful feature to me.

[zhangm Supervisor]

Sounds like a useful feature. Once you decide that it's necessary to share personal credentials (well, it happens), this is less clumsy than reading it out loud or writing it down for someone.

[remixedcat]

Not good if you don't trust all 2000 facebook friends lol

[Mr. Gibs]

1. You can disable it. The option is right there.

2. It doesn't give them access to the local network or shared files, it's strictly internet access only. Yes I know the article says a determined hacker might be able to break through it but why? There are tons of networks that don't have passwords, use WPS, use WEP, use outdated firmware. It's far far far easier for hacker to just gain access to those networks.

3. Corporate networks are at risk? Maybe you need to hire a more competent IT staff if the only thing protecting your confidential corporate network and files is a wifi password.

4. No it doesn't share it with your facebook and outlook contacts unless you give it extra permissions to do so. Facebook contacts requires another consent. It's not automatically sharing it with all your facebook friends unless you tick that box, then login to facebook and allow the app.

5. "Oh god my wifi password is stored on Microsofts servers" Google and Apple do the exact same thing when you use an android or an iPhone. Haven't seen anybody complain against that..

[remixedcat]

Meh I got passwords+captive portal that you need to re-associate with every 4 hours+tons of firewalling and traffic shaping on my guest networks