Is my information at risk?

[JustOneQuickONe]

I was at home on winter break and had my computer set up so I could connect to the internet with my XBox through my macbook. I got back to school yesterday and didn't change the settings back and I had sharing enabled. I have all my passwords and usernames in a document in my documents folder, however its not named passwords or anything obvious. I'm just wondering if I had these settings set up:

could someone have gotten into my computer over our network (I live in an apartment complex that provides internet) and gone through my stuff? I left the computer open for awhile with airport on (forgot to turn that off when I got here too) not using it, but not connected to any wireless router. Or was the sharing enabled only if you were connected to my computer using an ethernet cable?
Lets say I was connected to someone's wireless router could they have gone through my stuff? (pretty sure I wasn't but not 100% sure)

I don't want to have to go change all my passwords if I don't have to, it'll take awhile to change them all.

 

[plinden]

It looks to me that you were safe enough. You weren't sharing your airport so the only way to get to your ethernet connection was from the ethernet cable, which was in use.

And you were only sharing your web pages, not anything that would give access to your files (Windows Sharing, Personal File Sharing, FTP Access, Remote Access) so unless you had your passwords file in your Sites folder (you didn't, did you?) it wouldn't have been visible.

By the way, use Disk Utility to create an encrypted sparse disk image and put anything you want to keep away from prying eyes in it (and don't save the password in your keychain)

 

[JustOneQuickONe]

no i definitely do not have them saved there. So the only way they could have gotten my info is if they came in a shared internet by bridging with my computer via ethernet cable? There was no possible way they could have gotten in any other way, and I would have to be connected to the internet somehow as well correct? If I wasn't connected to the internet then obviously they can't get in. And if I was connected to someone's wireless they still would have to use the ethernet cable directly connected to my computer?

 

[MattyK]

No your files are safe, Unless someone took the ethernet cable from the modem and stuck it in theirs just to look at the sites you've been on, you're totally safe.

 

[JustOneQuickONe]

okay good. So the only thing they could have possibly looked at was the sites and even that is unlikely. I wish we lived in a world were we didn't have to worry about this kind of stuff but oh well. Thank you all for the mind easing information haha

just curious, trying to further my understanding, if you do look at someone's sites, as like in this case, would user names be filled in and everything? My belief is that these are saved on your personal computer only (ex: email address and password auto-entered) but not exactly sure how the sharing works.

 

[Nimble Cat]

How did you get it set up to share internet with your Xbox? I've been trying with some instructions from Joystiq, but I haven't been able to get it to work.

 

[JustOneQuickONe]

How did you get it set up to share internet with your Xbox? I've been trying with some instructions from Joystiq, but I haven't been able to get it to work.

That's actually the exact site i used haha. What OS are you running Tiger or Leopard. I have Tiger so if you do as well I may be able to help you but I'm not familiar with leopard at all.

 

[Nimble Cat]

That's actually the exact site i used haha. What OS are you running Tiger or Leopard. I have Tiger so if you do as well I may be able to help you but I'm not familiar with leopard at all.

I'm running Leopard. I'll figure it out eventually! Hopefully...

 

[JustOneQuickONe]

well I'll try, what cant you get working? The link between the computer and xbox or xbox and internet or what?

 

[Nimble Cat]

I got it to get past the IP and DNS stages, but it wouldn't connect to the internet. After messing around with it a little more it won't get past the DNS stage.

 

[JustOneQuickONe]

Do you have both things set up like above? I was having troubles but realized I didn't have personal web sharing on. I just got Leopard today from the university book store so when I get it installed I'll see if I can get up the xbox connection if we get our wireless set up. Let me know if you have that set up.