A survey conducted by Mumbai Police in co-ordination with cyber experts has revealed that a startling 34,000 WiFi networks in the city are unsecured.

Of the two lakh Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) networks in the metropolis, 17 per cent were found to be unprotected in a survey carried out by NASSCOM-KPMG and Mumbai police recently, cyber expert Vijay Mukhi said.

Mukhi, who was also part of the survey, said there was an urgent need for creating awareness about how to keep such networks protected after a series of incidents of terror outfits using WiFi connections of unsuspecting individuals to send emails.

"A terror technician needs only one WiFi to send his email. About 17 per cent of the WiFi networks available in the city cyber space is vulnerable and this is huge," he said.

The e-mail purportedly sent by terror outfit Indian Mujahideen claiming responsibility for the Varanasi blast has once again brought into focus the pressing need for protection of WiFi connections by the users, he said.

"Those using high-end computer equipment should be very careful to ensure that there is no misuse of technology," Mumbai Police Chief Sanjeev Dayal said.

A disc jockey Akhil Talreja's unsecured WiFi connection in sector 17 at Vashi in Navi Mumbai was hacked into to send the terror email to media houses after the Varanasi blast. .