| Figure B |
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| Wireless can also be used for building-to-building connectivity. |
No wireless project should be implemented without a lengthy discussion of security. Over the past year, much has been written about the vulnerabilities of 802.11 wireless LANs. Older forms of security on WLANs included the SSID, which was not really a security method at all, since the SSID can easily be retrieved by sniffing the network. Authentication based on MAC filters was found inappropriate because they, too, could be sniffed on the network, and the allowable MACs could be spoofed. Newer 802.11 security uses 128-bit Wireless Encryption Privacy (WEP) for data encryption, along with shared key authentication. Unfortunately, researchers have recently identified holes in WEP that let attackers learn the keys used to encrypt 802.11b traffic. So how does an organisation protect its wireless LAN access? The IEEE has a new security standard called 802.1X that may provide the best solution. The 802.1X standard takes authentication away from access points and places it in an authentication server such as RADIUS or Kerberos. It uses the current Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP) commonly used in PPP to control access. The 802.1X standard allows for the use of dynamically generated WEP keys on a per-session, per-user basis in place of a static WEP key placed in the access point. There are still weaknesses with this technology, and it has yet to be ratified and implemented by many vendors. So, at this time, encryption (usually in the form of VPN), traffic filtering, and other basic security restrictions on wireless network access in sensitive areas are still the best options for ensuring a secure wireless network. Summary
As changes are in the works to establish new 802.11 standards and improve security, wireless LANs are moving into corporate America at an increasing rate. Who knows? In a few short years, wireless networks may be as commonplace as their wired counterparts.
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