Chalk marks on pavements and walls could soon take on a whole new meaning on the streets of Sussex.
Warchalking is following hot on the heels of wardriving as a way to exploit the ever-increasing number of wireless networks in the county.
Unlike traditional local area networks (LANs), which use cables, wireless LANs use electromagnetic waves to transmit and receive data. It is difficult to confine the signals to a controlled location and hackers can access the networks and the information they contain.
Wardrivers can drive around cities using laptops to spot these wireless networks.
Warchalks are chalk marks revealing the location of wireless networks.
Warchalking uses a set of symbols, designed by web designer Matt Jones, to identify the types of wireless networks - open or closed networks and those protected by the WEP security system.
Brighton, a haven of technology and new media companies, could soon be chalking-up its own list of networks.
Geoff Davies, of Brighton-based security specialists i-Sec, said a big issue was how companies and individuals could protect their wireless networks.
He said: "While many companies have seen the scare stories in the media and taken appropriate action, many companies are new to the technology and not protecting themselves.
"We have lots of customers wanting to use wireless networks but they're quite nervous about doing it. You can use them securely but you actively have to do something.
"Wardriving and warchalking are mostly being done for sport. Very few people are doing it with malicious intent.
"But if it isn't secure and they stumble across it, they might use the internet connection as something to be shared.
"There's not much risk of a malicious attack but accidental usage could tempt people to use networks as and when they wanted. It's not so much people are under direct threat but they might get caught in the crossfire."
Mr Davies said some people were using warchalking to build community wireless projects.
He said: "The idea is everyone could use your connection when you're at work during the day.
"I know several people, not necessarily in Brighton, who are already doing this and I would expect Brighton's new media community to be a good place for this sort of cooperation to grow."
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