Defining the Bullet Points in a Security Policy

Some companies hire a special security consultant to write their security
policy, while others pay close attention to their needs and assemble a
policy based on the “best practices” they have learned when connecting
to their wireless network.

When you create a security policy, you must first determine who has
a legitimate need to use your WLAN, both internally and externally. For
those people who have a real need to access your network resource wirelessly,
you must determine if actual Internet access is required. If it is
not required, then you are adding some safety precautions by not having
to deal with external Internet connectivity that acts as a portal for hackers
to use to access your systems.

When dealing with the implementation issues within your company,
you must pay close attention to defining specifically who has control of
any access point installed in your organization. It is then very important
to define specific restrictions for placing any equipment in your company.
Determine who can potentially access the physical location of any
piece of your wireless equipment. It is best to hide all such equipment so
that it is far less possible for someone to alter the settings to permit
unauthorized access.

Your security policy can also function to protect you by defining what
type of information is permissible to send over your WLAN. It is important
to designate the specific types of wireless devices that can connect
to your network.

When working with access points, make certain you have clearly
defined security functionality. Password protect your internal configuration
Web pages so that nobody else can modify your security settings to
detract from them. You can then proceed by defining exactly what
restrictions you place on each type of wireless device. This means you
can specify certain locations where mobile devices may or may not be
used. The idea is to keep as much control as possible so that you know
who has access to each device on your WLAN. This information helps
you keep track of your network access so that you can more easily track
down potential hackers attempting to breach your network resources.