Wireless Security: Is Wireless Broadband Safe?
Going wireless is becoming mainstream and the costs have dropped dramatically. However, as the popularity of Wi-Fi has grown, so have security concerns about wireless networks. Wireless broadband communication provides potential security issues because, by their very design, WLANs afford open access. Similar to cordless phones, they use radio waves to transport data. Unless security is enabled, these signals can be intercepted by nearby receivers.
For most homes and small businesses, Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) provides adequate broadband protection to deter the casual intruder. Large businesses networks typically require a much higher level of security.
Encryption and Authentication
The two primary means of securing a network are encryption and authentication.
Encryption scrambles messages according to a secret key known only to the sender and receiver. Authentication is a means of ensuring that users are who they say they are before they are authorized to access the network. However, virtually any encryption scheme can be broken if a hacker has the time and resources to gather a sufficient amount of data that can be analyzed to deduce the secret key.
WEP and its Weaknesses
Wi-Fi’s native security mechanism, WEP, which involves relatively simple encryption, while useful for home networking and other light security needs, is inadequate for protecting confidential data:
- WEP uses a single, static shared key.
- At the time of its introduction, WEP employed a short 40-bitencryption scheme. The scheme was the maximum allowed by U.S. exportstandards at that time.
- Attacks could lead to the recovery of the WEP key itself.
VPNs
In Virtual Private Network technology (VPN), communications data remains encrypted until it reaches the VPN gateway, which sits behind the wireless access point. Intruders are blocked from intercepting network communications. This is why VPNs have been recommended to help secure Wi-Fi.
Wi-Fi Protected Access
Wi-Fi Protected Access is a specification of standards-based, interoperable security enhancements that strongly increase the level of encryption and authentication for existing and future wireless LAN systems. It solves all of WEP’s known vulnerabilities.
Broadband Security in Public Places
Wireless networks in public areas and hotspots like Internet cafes may not provide any security. Although some service providers do provide this with their custom software, many hotspots leave all security turned off to make it easier to access and get on the network in the first place. If security is important to you, the best way to achieve this when you are connecting back to your office is to use a VPN. If you do not have access to a VPN, you may want to limit your wireless network use in these areas to non-critical e-mail and basic Internet surfing.
The good news is that many hotspot providers and Wi-Fi manufacturers are implementing improved security technologies to protect Wi-Fi users against interception and eavesdropping in public hotspots.
While security is an issue, with the proper precautions, your broadband wireless Internet connection is perfectly safe.
