Using WPA for a more secure wireless connection

Using WPA for a more secure wireless connection

Wi-Fi Protected Access, or WPA, is a new, improved security standard for wireless connections. WPA has addressed the weaknesses of WEP; it was developed to create a viable alternative to WEP that is more secure than that standard. The fundamentals are the same between the standards, but WPA has improved some of the various mechanisms that plagued WEP. For example, encryption keys are now dynamic and change often automatically. Additionally, the complexity of the encryption key has also been increased to help fight off users who try to derive a key from data that they capture. One of the largest improvements in WPA is the addition of authentication to the wireless connection. Now, users have to have the right encryption settings, as well as a valid username and password, to gain access to the network.

This new standard is just starting to gain momentum. Microsoft has released a special patch for Windows XP that adds this new standard to Windows. However, installing the patch will not allow you to use this new standard. Just as with WEP, WPA is programmed into the firmware of the hardware components. In order to use WPA, you must have hardware that specifically supports it. Currently, only a few companies offer base stations and wireless adapters that support this new method of security. However, that will change in time.

The next time you are considering purchasing a wireless base station and adapter, do some research and pick one that supports WPA to ensure that your wireless communications will not be decrypted and your privacy is secure.

Tags : Using WPA for a more secure wireless connection, Network Security, Wireless Connection

Read More >>

Using WEP for secure communication

Using WEP for secure communication

Wired Equivalent Privacy, or WEP, is the first security standard for wireless networks. The basic concept for WEP security is to encrypt the data that is sent back and forth between the access point and the client adapter. This is done using various degrees of encryption strength. A special key, known as the encryption key, is used by computers to connect to a WEP-protected wireless network. This allows the client computer's adapter to be able to decrypt and also send
encrypted messages in the same language as the base station.

This standard sounds like a great way to secure a wireless network. However, it presents some flaws. The largest one is that the whole system relies on just one key. If someone's laptop is stolen that is part of a corporate network, the encryption key must be changed for the base station and for all of the other computers using the wireless connection. This change is necessary because the current encryption key could be easily extracted from the system settings.
Additionally, someone can potentially derive the encryption key by carefully analyzing the data they intercepted.

If you have a wireless base station, I highly recommend that you enable WEP to protect your home. Setting up WEP is different on every set of hardware, but the following are the basics:

1. Connect to your base station setting remotely using your Web browser. This address and port number varies, but usually is http://192.168.1.1 or http://192.168.2.1. Often, the port number is changed to 8080 so people donÕt think you have a Web server running. In that case, try http://192.168.1.1:8080 or http://192.168.2.1:8080.

2. Once you connect, you usually are asked for a password. For all Linksys hardware, the Username field is left blank and the password is admin. Other hardware manufacturers use some sort of a variation of the above. It also would be a good idea to change the password to something other than admin when you are working in the administration settings.

3. Locate the WEP settings and specify the encryption strength in bits. Then, come up with an encryption key and type that in. Write down your encryption key and strength for use in step 5.

4. Save your changes. You can now close the Web administration site.

5. The last part of setting up WEP is configuring the client computers that will connect to the base station. Once again, this information varies, depending on your wireless card. Consult the manual for your card to find out how to set up your card to use WEP.

Setting up WEP will greatly increase the security of your wireless network. Even though there are some flaws, it is much better than using no protection at all. It has the same effect as a car alarm. If a burglar has to choose between a car that clearly has an alarm or one that doesn't, which one will they choose to break into?

Tags : Using WEP for secure communication, Network Security
Read More >>