A research group put up a public Wi-Fi hotspot in London to see how careless people were with their browsing habits. The “give up your child” clause was in the oft-neglected “terms and conditions” page that popped up before users signed on.

The researchers disabled that page shortly after the experiment began, but they still found troubling results. 250 people connected to the free network without even realizing it, they said. And 32 megabytes of data were stolen by the researchers (and immediately destroyed).

The experiment was meant to simulate the way actual hackers can steal data, according to CNET.

“It’s time to shift public perception of ‘free’ Wi-Fi,” Sean Sullivan, one of the researchers, told CBS News.

Read CNET's full story here.

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Rebecca Ramage-Tuttle, assistant director of the Statewide Independent Living Council of Georgia, says the the DOE rule change is “a slippery slope” for civil rights. (Hyosub Shin/AJC)

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC