New laws threaten public WiFi

Mobile workers could be hit hard by new laws which will affect the state of public WiFi in the UK.

The Digital Economy Bill is being pushed through by the government and could become law before the next general election. The bill has been designed by Business Secretary Lord Mandleson to regulate age ratings for video games and regulate copyright of music and films, among other things. 

While the controversial new bill has won the backing of many high-profile figures, there are also fears its side-effects could have a devastating effect on a generation which is used to accessing WiFi on the go. The bill could lead to public places like cafes and pubs being prosecuted if someone uses their WiFi to share files illegally. 

But what if they don't know? It doesn't matter! The tough new law doesn't make any exceptions when it comes to piracy and law breaking. Many web-lovers have described this new bill as "draconian" and fear it could have a serious impact on people's web habits. 

"People's rights are at stake. The bill doesn't require any test of evidence before harsh punishments are imposed on people accused of copyright infringement, and opens the door to a ratcheting-up of unwarranted powers without democratic scrutiny," said Jim Killock from the Open Rights Group.

"There is a massive swell of action against this bill, led by creators, citizens and people working in digital industries, who are outraged by this attempt by old businesses to hijack our rights."

For this reason, it could be the end of free public WiFi. Many restaurants, airports and universities now might be forced to install passwords on all servers to avoid prosecution. 

And it's not just public consumers and businesses which are set to be affected by the new bill. Major websites such as Facebook and YouTube could face illegal action if illegal content is found on their pages. 

While this new bill could prove to be a great asset in the fight against privacy, it certainly seems it won't be popular with all and could prove to have more of an impact on each and every resident in the UK than we might have first anticipated.