Question : Mac Filtering and no SSID = Secure?

I've got my wireless network set up to only allow the specified network adapters to connect to it, and I'm not broadcasting an SSID. There's no encryption.  Is this setup secure?

Answer : Mac Filtering and no SSID = Secure?

As with all security questions the answer to "is it secure" depends on who would potentially be trying to gain unauthorized access. Answers are quite different if you're trying to protect yourself from the guy next door vs. from the determined hacker.

That setup will proabably protect you from the guy next door trying to freeload off of your broadband connection. However, while your setup is better than nothing it is also not very secure as it is not hard to spoof hardware addresses and without encryption would be easy to sniff a packet to determine allowed hardware addresses so if the guy next store has some networking experience it wouldn't be hard for him to gain access. Assuming you're not worrying about serious attempts to break into your network, I would enable WEP to add one more layer and then leave it at that. Also, if you're worried about access to content on your home machines a client firewall is a good idea. For all the bashing that Windows SP2 firewall has received, for the typical user I don't think it is bad and it is much easier to manage than Zonealarm or similar firewalls. I used zonealarm for years but it is kind of a dog and prone to quirky problems. I've been using only the firewall in SP2 for several months now and am satisfied. I'm not worried about the determined hacker.

Lastly, if you do have some documents which you consider very private and want to protect them against serious attempts at compromising your system then I suggest the personal version of PGP (see http://www.pgp.com). Download the trial version and read the two PDF manuals. This won't protect your system, but will prevent anyone but you from being able to access it even if they have physical possession of your computer.