WarDriving and Wireless Penetration Testing

Foreword

“Today I discovered the world’s largest hot spot; the SSID is ‘linksys.’”

If you’ve ever exchanged e-mail with me, you might have noticed this signature at the bottom of my message. When I first thought of this quip, I thought it was funny, so I put it in my e-mail signature. As time went on however, I came to appreciate the subtle implications of this tagline—specifically, that most people do not take sufficient precautions to secure their wireless networks.

I take great enjoyment in my work in the information security field. When it comes to wireless networks, the challenge for me is that we have removed the most significant security measure that protects any asset: physical security. Without physical security, anyone can walk ...