This Wi-Fi piggybacking widespread tripe is simply wrong-headed and legally stupid. There is no law saying that I must secure my WiFi port and furthermore, if I choose not to (and decide to take the risks associated) there is no law that says a neighbor or passerby is breaking any law. The article makes it sound like there’s law covering this and there simply is not.
Am I (are we) taking a risk of sniffing and password and identity theft? Yes. About as much as with any other network open to the public like T-Mobile’s or Boingo’s. They are no more protected than my home network and they’re in lovely places where there’s lots more concentrated action to sniff and snarf. The protections they offer are to themselves to assure people don’t get access to their unsecured networks without paying!