Thanks for everyone’s comments about my recent post about my internet privacy & security issues with my landlady here in Barcelona!  In my last email to Elena I asked her how she wanted to share 1 router with 3 flats (!) whereby she told me a hole would be drilled and a cable from downstairs would be plugged into our router up here. After a few days of silence, she finally got back to me with this:

• 5th Email: Landlady to Feli (me):

Sorry to reply you late, but the truth is that I am very busy with no time to sit in front of the computer! [I see!]

Yes, you are right, exactly like that a Lan cable will be pushed through a hole from downstairs to connect with your router.  It will not happen that the plug will come out, we have it like that in many places and it works well, nobody will knock on your door.  The only thing that may happen is that they phone me and I phone you to make a rerouting.  It is not the entire building, it will be three flats. You will have the rooter and the phone that as you know.
The other option for you is that we take out the rooter from your flat and the phone too, leaving you the connection, but I think that is more convenient for you to have it.
When we will have free the entire building, then we will do a connection always for three flats but with the rooters at the staircase, but in this moment the more convenient thing is to do it like that.
I apologize for any trouble that it make cause you to make the connection but it will be something that not will take long.
I am going to be away from Barcelona during next week and we can organize a day good for everybody, the afternoon to do it.  i do not think it will take you longer than one hour, probably less.
Best regards,
Elena

Aha! Interesting… she does this all the time?

Anyway, I am pretty sure that no-one will move in downstairs for another few months and by then we’ll have hopefully found another place where we can have our own router. What a luxury that would be!

Enjoy your weekend!

written by Feli \\ tags: internet, internet privacy, internet security

I never think about internet security and privacy that much to be honest. But an email conversation with my landlady changed my view on this matter completely.  The situation is just too funny, outrageous and a little bit scary, so I need to share it with you all!

Since my partner and I arrived in Barcelona we have been having quite an interesting time with our landlady. Over the past few months we’ve been living above a building site. The work was meant to be completed in January and we’re already half way through March and I can’t see the works being completed any time soon.

Hence I got in touch with our landlady to enquire about the aforementioned noise, which in turn reminded her to ask for a favour from our end.

I will just copy and past now, thinking about it makes me laugh so hard, I have tears rolling down my cheeks, whilst I am quite astounded how this can be real. I am also going to leave the names in, because the reader audience is mainly English speaking and I just need to keep them in there for effect.

Here it goes.

Internet security, we need no stinking internet privacy

Starring:

1) Landlady: Elena

2) Tenant: Feli

3) The all around handyman: Mr. Salas

4) Internet technician: Carlos Grau

• 1st Email - Landlady to me (Feli):

Hi Felicitas

There will be days with noise and another with less but they are working everyday to be able to finish soonest!.

I wanted to contact you because we would need to go to your flat to make a connection between your rooter and the flats below that will share the connection. Tell us please when it would be convenient to arrange it with Mr. Salas.

We will wait for your news, thanks and regards,

Elena

• 2nd Email - Me (Feli) to Landlady:

Hi Elena,

I’m not quite sure why Mr Salas would need access to our router to give the flats below internet access, surely those flats will have there own landline connections? if there were several people all sharing from the same connection this would make it very slow? or would the speed of the connection be upgraded?

Regards

Felicitas

• 3rd Email – Landlady to Feli (me):

Hi Felicitas,
I hope the noise is getting better.

Mr. Salas has to come to your flat to open a link, passing by the floor to connect the rooter with the flats below.  Then, below they will have their connections.

We would have the technician for the internet, Carlos Grau that would come together with Mr. Salas.  Sr. Salas will make a hole to connect below and Grau will pass the cable and this is it.  No more bother for you.

Regards

Elena

• 4th Email: Feli (me) to landlady:

Hi Elena,

Am I right in thinking from below that a LAN cable will be pushed through a hole from downstairs that will connect to the router sitting in our flat? this doesn’t seem right to me, what if the plug comes out? we would have people knocking on our door asking what has happened to the internet? or if like some days, it just does not work for a few hours? again, we would be responsible for the entire buildings internet? I did own a property in the UK previously so I know this is not the best way to get a whole building hooked up to the internet.

It would make more sense for each of the flats to have there own walled internet connection and own routers to allow for several computers in each flat to be hooked up.

If I have misunderstood what is getting done please clarify.

Regards

Felicitas

Well, what do you think? A little bit dodgy, isn’t it? What about privacy issues, someone savvy could hack into our computers easily. I am not very comfortable with that. Let’s see what the landlady tells us next.

written by Feli \\ tags: internet privacy, internet security, spain