Wi-Fi Security

To explain the 802.11 standard more fully, the period between the end of the packet transmission and the start of the ACK frame is one short interframe space (SIFS). The ACK frames have an increased priority over other wireless traffic. ... [full story]

The 802.11 standard offers two distinct types of PHY, including two RF technologies designated as:
Direct-sequence spread spectrum (DSSS)
Frequency-hopped spread spectrum (FHSS) The 802.11b standard in both DSSS and FHSS PHY designations is created to ... [full story]

An extended service set (ESS) is composed of several BSSs, each of which contains its own access point linked through a distribution system (DS). While a DS can actually be any type of network, it must be connected to ... [full story]

Ad Hoc Networks In most ad hoc networks, the BSS has at least has one access point whose primary responsibility is to create a link between the wired and wireless networks. An access point is very much like a base ... [full story]

The 802.11 standard evolved from the wired IEEE 802.3 Ethernet standard restricted within the physical (PHY) and the medium access control (MAC) sublayers. The primary difference between physical and wireless networks is the basic service set (BSS), which is composed ... [full story]

When you are deciding what important issues to consider for your wireless network, it is important to take the following points into consideration.
Integrating your wireless network with your wired LAN
Dealing with several access points
Radio interference
... [full story]

The evolution of the IEEE 802.11 standard for wireless local area networking (WLAN) has pushed for higher and higher data speeds with the concept of making mobile computing devices a realistic alternative to the “wired” desktop machine. Although wired LANs ... [full story]

In 1997, after seven years of work, the IEEE published 802.11, the firstinternationally sanctioned standard for wireless LANs. With 802.11b (2G)and 802.11a (3G) WLANs, mobile users can get Ethernet levels of performance,throughput, and availability. This chapter defines the standardsbasedtechnology that ... [full story]

It is understandable that the nature of the wireless LAN makes it fraught with a number of wireless security risks. Most WLAN devices come out of the box having no actual means of security to protect them against hackers. It ... [full story]

In these attacks, an unauthorized user acquires access to your networkdata sources. There is no alteration of message content, but it is possibleto eavesdrop on the transmission. Passive attacks are meant not to disrupt,but to acquire information flowing across your ... [full story]

An active attack constitutes a pattern where a hacker attempts to modifyyour data channel, messages, or files. With constant vigilance you willbe able to catch this type of attack; however it is difficult to prevent thistype of attack without actually ... [full story]

The 802.11 standard has become enormously popular in a diverse numberof implementations including hospitals, airports, retail outlets, andbusinesses.The attacks, however, are growing significantly, so that having awireless network is almost a guarantee that your private informationwill leak out to the ... [full story]

Knowing the most common problems with WLAN security as it relatesto the 802.11 standard can help you find and solve the problems withyour implementation before they become vulnerabilities that hackerscan exploit to your disadvantage. Poor Security, Better than No ... [full story]

Another problem possible on your 802.11 WLAN is a WEP attack where a hacker initiates an active attack while simultaneously deciphering data channel packets by altering their information and CRC and then transmitting these altered bits of information back to ... [full story]

There are a number of security vulnerabilities in 802.11 that have unfortunately been discovered by malicious hacker exploits. These vulnerabilities constitute passive types of attacks that are designed to decrypt traffic with respect to algorithms based on statistical analysis and ... [full story]

One of the problems with the 802.11 standard is that it has no good way of managing keys (Figure 4.4). The administrators who take care of your wireless network are responsible for several methods of managing keys with respect to: ... [full story]

One of the advantages of 802.11b is that it ensures that your data transmission remains intact as it follows the wireless path between the wireless workstation and the access point. The idea of this level of security is to reject ... [full story]

In dealing with security and privacy so much in my career, I once learned the mantra that “A security solution without ensuring privacy is not a solution at all!” As we concentrate on the issues pertinent in wireless security, it ... [full story]

Data is encrypted using the RC4 cipher. Note that the wireless workstation does not authenticate the access point, so that there is no verifiable means to make certain that the client is effectively talking to an authorized access point ... [full story]

The shared key authentication encryption mechanism uses the “challenge- response” mechanism. The idea is that each wireless client has an understanding of what is commonly referred to as a “shared secret.” The access point creates a random type of challenge ... [full story]

Client Authentication in a Closed System In the previous section we saw that when a wireless workstation replies to the access point with a null or empty string in place of the actual SSID, it is automatically authenticated into the ... [full story]

When a wireless user attempts to acquire access to your wired network infrastructure, there are two ways in which access can be obtained: 1. Open system—Any user in range of the access point can roam onto the system (as long ... [full story]

The most important issue when dealing with wireless security is to consider the fundamental security mechanisms in your wireless network. There are two primary means of adding security to your environment 1. Authentication—This mechanism has the objective of ... [full story]

In order to convince you that there are real issues to consider when implementing your WLAN, it is important to focus on the integrated security features present within 802.11b and their limitations. 802.11b offers features and functionality that provide you ... [full story]

This pages presents an assessment of wireless security with focus on the effective response to the three primary issues noted below:
Is the data adequately protected from compromise during transmission?
Is access to the transmission and other information ... [full story]

Wireless LANs pose a serious security threat for those companies that believe that the technology alone (out of the box) will ensure security for wireless corporate users. In fact, this is a relatively insecure medium that has a great number ... [full story]

802.11 uses spread-spectrum technology, which sounds almost like background noise to the average person. However, someone skilled in eavesdropping techniques can determine the transmission parameters of the 802.11 signal in order to decode the spreading code and put it into ... [full story]

Beyond wireless DoS attacks, there are several points of vulnerability within your WLAN that can be disrupted or destroyed by knowledgeable hackers who are trying to corrupt your wireless infrastructure. The most vulnerable points include those shown in Figure 3.2. ... [full story]

If all else fails and a hacker simply wants to disrupt your wireless network, he can create a wireless denial of service (DoS) attack that renders your entire wireless network unusable. This is accomplished by creating a transmitter powerful enough ... [full story]

In counterfeiting, a hacker sets up an unauthorized access point to make other wireless stations access it instead of the authorized net- work. When a wireless user moves from one location to another, the NIC card often latches onto ... [full story]

An active type of attack is when a wireless user actually breaks into your network disguised as an authorized user. Even if you have taken the precautions of encrypting your network traffic and blocking out any unauthorized wireless NIC cards, ... [full story]

Hackers can easily eavesdrop on your network traffic by monitoring the radio waves transmitted by your access point or wireless router. While this type of attack is considered passive in nature, it is simple to accomplish. All the hacker really ... [full story]