Conclusion: Open System versus Closed System Authentication

Conclusion: Open System versus
Closed System Authentication

This chapter deals with the problems associated with having an open
system of authentication in your WLAN. While it may be easier to
deploy and simpler for users to connect, it presents a terrible risk in
your security that could leave your system open to an attack by a hacker
and make it easy for someone to compromise not only your wireless network,
but your entire intranet as well.

To best defend yourself, you can utilize all the types of encryption standards
inherent in an 802.11 protocol like WEP. The idea of this system is
to close your open system sufficiently so that only authorized users can
access your network resources. Encrypting your data also protects your
network traffic from prying eyes trying to determine how to intercept your
mission-critical data. The concept is to make your WLAN have a level of
security analogous to that of a wired LAN. In theory, this is a useful idea;
in practice it is not usually accomplished because of the great number of
ways in which your wireless network is vulnerable to a hacker attack.167