Fatwa For Those Who Steal Neighbors Wi-Fi (But Don’t Worry)

Dubai’s top religious authorities say that stealing Wi-Fi from your neighbor would not be proper Islamic conduct.

The edict says: There is nothing wrong in using the line if your neighbors allow you to do so, but if they’d don’t allow you, you may not use it.

Fatwas haven’t been understood clearly by people outside the Muslim World. Oftentimes, people believe a fatwa to indicate that a death sentence has been dealt to someone or some group of people. This, however is a very narrow interpretation. In fact, a fatwa is an Islamic legal pronouncement, issued by an expert in religious law (mufti), pertaining to a specific issue, usually at the request of an individual or judge to resolve an issue where Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh), is unclear, according to the Islamic Supreme Council.

Reddit users in Dubai took the opportunity to share concerns about WiFi service from local providers. 

The fatwa was issued by the Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities Department (IACAD) is an agency of the government of Dubai. It was founded in 1969. The Department was originally known as the Department of Awqaf, and it was responsible for awqaf (in Islamic law, a religious endowment). Subsequently Islamic affairs were added to the department’s responsibilities.