Wireless Security.pdf - PDF Archive

Implementing Basic Wireless Security 471
Figure 20.5 : Making WEP mandatory on the Linksys WAP11
Although WEP is flawed, actually cracking the WEP key is not a simple process on a
home network, for two primary reasons.
1. The amount of traffic that must be generated in order to successfully crack the
WEP key.
2. Vendors have taken steps to eliminate or reduce the number of Weak Initialization
Vectors (IVs) that are transmitted.
It usually requires at least 1200 Weak IVs to be collected before a WEP key is cracked.
On a home network it can take days, weeks, or even months to generate enough traffic
to capture that many Weak IVs. It is highly unlikely that an attacker will invest that
amount of time into attacking a simple home network, especially when there are so many
networks that don’t have WEP enabled.
Many vendors have also developed firmware upgrades that reduce or eliminate the
number of Weak IVs that are generated. This further increases the amount of time it takes
to successfully crack a WEP key.
To enable WEP on the Linksys WAP11, on the main setup screen select the Mandatory
radio button, as shown in Figure 20.5 .
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