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Apartment Network Question - Mystery Shared PC Present?

I've got a Mac running solo (no other computers present) in an apartment on a recently installed cable internet connection. I'm seeing a shared folder from a Windows PC in the Finder window. (!?) Clearly, it's a neighbor. Does this always indicate someone is stealing the connection, or is it possible that a wiring mistake was made by the tech? I don't live at this particular apartment and know very little about apartment living. Should the wiring and boxes be locked down - or is it a free for all? Thanks. This is not wifi. It's a paid cable service, connected via ethernet. What I meant by "free for all" was if the wiring is exposed so any tenant could simply hijack your connection. This is not an apartment hosted service. This is an independently contracted service with the local cable co who came out to hook it up.

Public Comments

1. Hi Ryan, Do you pay for the internet connection? If you pay for the connection than it is not a free for all; if the connection is payed for by your apartment it might be. Are you using WIFI (wireless) to get your internet? If so, make sure that it is secured with WPA encryption; this will prevent others from using your connection. If you are using a wired connection and you are paying for internet than it is quite strange indeed. You might want to ask you apartment manager. Keeping others from using your connection is good so they don't take all your bandwidth, or download music, or share illegal material that could get you in trouble.
2. It's really hard for someone to steal a wired cable subscription. It's not so hard for some "electronically challenged" individual to: 1. connect his computer directly to their modem without a router - so they do not have a hardware firewall 2. Disable their Windows Firewall - now there is no software firewall 3. Enable file and print sharing - now there is no protection at all That would put their shared folder on the cable companies network for all to see. It has happened before. In the early days of cable networks, people had their whole C: drives on the Internet. Hacking is really easy when the target is really stupid
3. 'johnt..' has it: Most folks don't understand that Windows, by default, has "printer & file share' enabled, which is what you're seeing. Not a hack, just somebody completely in the dark.