Li-Fi, Light-Based Networking Standard Released

Alex Atkin UK · July 19, 2023

7 hours ago, Sakuriru said:

It's more secure in the sense that someone standing on your roof with an antenna like a ninja can't get access to your home network as easily. But to call this "more secure" is kind of a lie, since it isn't since this scenario isn't really ever going to happen. It is not more secure in how data is transmitted, which is normally what people care about.

Essentially "it's more secure in a completely unrealistic scenario that would never happen" is an egregious cherry pick and completely dishonest to represent as a significant advantage.

But they don't have to stand on your roof as already pointed out, you can snoop on WiFi data from miles away as long as you have good line of sight to the building, not necessarily the transmitter directly. I doubt LiFi is intelligible at those distances as light will diffuse, attenuate and other light sources make the pulses unintelligible.

Even if you can, it requires much more expensive equipment as you'd need a good telescope with pristine lenses whereas a directional WiFi antenna is dirt cheap.

The technology is relying on a clean unobstructed short-range distance to work at all. Part of the point is you can beam the signal to a single table under a spotlight, and every table have its own bandwidth that doesn't interfere with each other.

The security might not be the main point, but the fact it doesn't leak signal causing crosstalk (the reason why security is better) is.

Alex Atkin UK · July 19, 2023

4 hours ago, Sakuriru said:

What are you talking about? No one is picking up WiFi signals at miles away from your house. Even Ubiquiti's pro WAPs are transmitting at 22 dBm, a value that is equivalent to milliwatts of power. Those signals will attenuate to nothing before it reaches 200 meters, let alone a mile.

You can, but there are a lot of factors. Granted mainly at 2.4Ghz but it depends how many obstructions there are and how many clashing broadcasts there may be on the same channel.

Granted I may have over-estimated the distance my friend was at, seems it was more like 1.1KM.