802.11 Security

Looking Ahead

Many of the current problems with 802.11 protocols stem from design issues. WEP suffers from cryptographic design problems. Access points were designed to act as layer 2 bridges to facilitate roaming, which opened the network up to extensive ARP attacks. The focus on ease of use and quick setup has led to manuals that don’t mention key security issues or safe configurations. As these issues have been brought to light, products have improved. Much work still needs to be done.

The newer 802.11 variants, such as 802.11a and the forthcoming 802.11g, attempt to address the shortcomings of 802.11b, providing improved bandwidth and security fixes. These changes will take time to mature, and will likely initially have some problems as well. However, security experts now are much more interested in the investigation of security problems in 802.11, so problems should be examined much more deeply.

The 802.11 family of protocols will continue to grow rapidly in both industry and the consumer market. It provides convenience for users and is affordable. Anyone who has worked from a wireless laptop understands how much less of a hassle it is compared to dealing with network cables strung all over.

Another strong driving force of the advancement of wireless technology is how hackable, in the good meaning of the word, 802.11 devices are. Many groups have sprung up that are attempting to use this equipment in novel ways. Some notable examples are the creation of mesh networks out of clusters ...