Wired versus Wireless Security

Wired LANs are much harder to compromise in terms of security
because a hacker must physically connect to the network wiring in order
to gain unauthorized access into the LAN. This means the hacker has to
be inside the building or gain access through a public telephone line.
You can implement greater physical security in your building, thereby
preventing anyone who is not authorized from entering your facilities
and accessing your LAN equipment.

The transmission signals from your WLAN are more fluid in that
they are sent over the air from one building to another in your corporate
environment. The problem is that the physical security mechanisms
that were so useful in your wired networking environment are no longer
useful in your wireless environment.

WLAN equipment vendors enable mobile networking cards to roam
automatically until they access a wireless network. This means that
security is no longer constrained to the actual LAN wiring, but instead
is a problem for all the spaces in between buildings where the wireless
signal is strong and can easily be picked up by any network card. In
addition, wireless hackers can do a “drive by” to try and access your
wireless signals from public streets.