Wireless Security

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Wireless transmission is defined as the sending of signals over electromagnetic radio waves. Wireless networks have become very widespread. In some cases, wireless networks replace the need from tradition wiring. However, in larger networks, wireless technology is used typically as an extension or addition to a wired network. Wireless networks offer the ability of computing in places that would be otherwise hard to reach with a wire or cable. The use of wireless technology has been widely accepted by the military, hospitals, business, museums, and home users alike.

The IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) has developed standards for wireless technologies. These standards are a set of rules that provide a sort of instruction map of guidelines for technology developers to follow when creating new or adding to existing technologies. The IEEE standards that apply to wireless networking are 802.11, 802.11a, 802.11b, and 802.11g. The IEEE and more information on wireless standards will be discussed in Chapter 4. In its simplest of forms a wireless local area network or WLAN is displayed in Figure 3.2. Basic wirelesses networks typically have a wireless client, an authentication server or host, and an access point.

The need to secure the use of wireless technologies and remote wireless user access has become paramount. Not too long ago, wireless connections were thought to be somewhat secure. Recently, these thoughts have changed based on security holes found in the technology. Next, we will discuss several important wireless protocols that are used to secure wireless communication.

WAP

WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) is a wireless standard that applies to wireless communication protocols and devices. There are several wireless standards that are used by various wireless device service manufactures. WAP is positioned to allow interoperability between them.

WAP has its own built-in security. It uses WTLS (Wireless Transport Layer Security), which is the wireless version or relative of SSL. As you might recall, SSL uses certificates and a client/server, verification/authentication process. So is the case with WTLS.

WEP

WEP (Wired Equitant Privacy) is a wireless security protocol specified under the IEEE 802.11b. WEP is intended to provide a WLAN with a similar security level as the protection that can be found in traditional LANs (local area networks). WEP attempts to secure the obvious security hole that exists between a wireless client and an access point by encrypting the data that is transmitted. Once the data has been safely transmitted, it is thought that conventional network security measures such as VLANS, antivirus, tunneling, and authentication solutions can be implemented for security purposes.

Note 

The exam is likely to ask you basic questions relating to wireless networking. For example: What technology does WEP have to do with? Or what does WAP do?

Site Surveys

Before you install a wireless network solution into an existing building or between existing buildings (building to building), you should first have a professional site survey conducted by certified RF (radio frequency) engineers. These engineers can properly recommend and assist you with an integration plan as well as keep you in line with federal, state, and local regulations as they apply to wireless networks.

With traditional network installations, it is much easier to plan out a network topology and possibly foresee obstacles that will need to be addressed. However, with wireless networks that implement the use of radio transmission techniques, it is very difficult to plan for and determine how a network will react to the surrounding conditions. Obstacles such as asbestos lined walls, trees, and other physical impediments can severely impact the effectiveness of wireless communication. The interference with other RF bands in busy airways can severely hamper your performance and ability to communicate between access points. Certified site survey technicians can detect potential interference between RF bands with a tool called a spectrum analyzer.

A good site survey should provide you with the most suitable wireless equipment options to integrate with your current topology and applications. It should also provide you with a wireless standard that is in line with your required transmission speeds and ultimately, your budget.

Note 

If you are interested in getting a wireless network solution, the first step is to have a site survey performed.

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