Five homeowners arrested in France for using Wi-Fi networks without registration

At least five managers of bars and cafes in the French city of Grenoble were arrested for using open Wi-Fi networks in their establishments and not keeping records of users connected to them.

The arrest was made based on a French law dating from 2006, which stipulates that anyone who provides Internet access must keep access logs for at least one year. They now risk a sentence of up to one year in prison, a personal fine of up to € 75,000 and a commercial fine of up to € 375,000..

The owners of the affected businesses affirmed that they were unaware of the existence of this law, much less that it applied to them, since they had not received notifications from their union.