Protect your wireless network from hackers and war drivers.

Thinking about dragging a cheap base station into your corporate office so you can use that notebook wirelessly in the conference room? Wi-Fi is a cheap solution, but that doesn't make it a good idea. Your IT department would probably beat you with a stick because you can easily compromise the security of your entire network.

Don't think you need a secure wireless network at home? Imagine the neighbor kid using your DSL or cable bandwidth to download warez and porn, or to launch a slightly sleazy cracking session online.

Don't assume you can just whip that wireless access point (WAP) out of the cardboard and styrofoam, plug it in, and start networking. It'll probably work, but you won't be secure at all.

That said, don't panic.

The answer

The Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) algorithm, which is part of the 802.11 standard, isn't the complete answer. WEP is compromised. (Want to learn the dense dark details? Read this.)

That said, it's good to practice good security habits.
  • Don't use Wi-Fi in places you don't want to share your network connection.
  • Turn off beaconing. Beaconing sends a signal out with your service set identifier (SSID), and anybody can match up to it. Disable it, and the SSID in the client must match the SSID of the base station. Makes it harder for strangers to find your system and log on.
  • Change the stock SSID.
  • Lock down your WAP using MAC addresses.
  • Getting serious? Put the WAP outside your firewall and create a virtual private network (VPN) that connects through it.
  • Change your passwords on a frequent basis.
  • Even though it's not completely secure, turn on WEP. It's one more thing to put in the way of the baddies.


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