wpa
12 ResultsDictionary
WPA
(2) See Windows Product Activation. (1) (Wi-Fi Protected Access) A security protocol for wireless 802.11 networks from the Wi-Fi Alliance that was developed to provide a migration from WEP. The...
Dictionary
Definition: WPA
(2) See Windows Product Activation.
(1) (Wi-Fi Protected Access) A security protocol for wireless 802.11 networks from the Wi-Fi Alliance that was developed to provide a migration from WEP. The WPA logo certifies that devices are compliant with a subset of the IEEE 802.11i protocol. WPA2 certifies full support for 802.11i.
Strong Security
WPA and WPA2 use a sophisticated key hierarchy that generates new encryption keys each time a mobile device establishes itself with an access point. Protocols including 802.1X, EAP and RADIUS are used for strong authentication. A RADIUS server provides automatic key generation and enterprise-wide authentication.
For home and small business users who do not have an authentication server, WPA can be used in preshared keys (PSK) mode, which requires that a shared secret key be manually entered into the access points and each user's computer. The shared secret is used to automatically generate the encryption keys.
WPA - 802.11i Subset for Migration Upgrades
WPA's Temporal Key Integrity Protocol (TKIP) uses the same RC4 algorithm as WEP for encryption, but adds sophisticated key management and effective message integrity checking. TKIP was designed to be efficient enough to work in older WEP devices by updating their firmware to WPA. See WEP.
WPA2 - Full 802.11i
In addition to TKIP, WPA2 supports the AES-CCMP encryption protocol. Based on the very secure AES national standard cipher combined with sophisticated cryptographic techniques, AES-CCMP was specifically designed for wireless networks. AES-CCMP requires more computing power than TKIP, and migration from WEP to WPA2 requires new hardware. Devices running in WPA2 mode are not backward compatible with WEP. See 802.11i, AES-CCMP, 802.1X, EAP and RADIUS.
802.11 Encryption Methods
As 802.11 security protocols evolved, the encryption methods became more robust.
The Wireless Security Primer
Jon Edney and William Arbaugh's \"Real 802.11 Security\" (Pearson Education, 2004, ISBN 0-321-13620-9) covers every technical detail you will ever need to know about 802.11i, WPA, WEP and other related protocols. It is also a great primer on wireless security in general.
THIS DEFINITION IS FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY
All other reproduction is strictly prohibited without permission from the publisher.
© 1981-2010 The Computer Language Company Inc. All rights reserved.
Sponsored White Papers, Webcasts & Resources
-
Netshelter CX Enclosure - Product Demonstration
With the Netshelter CX enclosure, you'll be able to set up a server nearly anywhere. It's the IT industry's first soundproofed, portable server environment. Check out this video to learn more.
-
Firesheep's Real Lesson: Take Wi-Fi Security Seriously
Firesheep has people in a panic because it makes it easy to grab useful information when you're using public Wi-Fi. Big deal. You could always do that. The real worry is that businesses' Wi-Fi...
-
New cloud-based hacking service can crack Wi-Fi passwords in 20 minutes
A new, cloud-based hacking service says it can crack a WPA Wi-Fi network password in just 20 minutes.
-
Researchers crack WPA Wi-Fi encryption in 60 seconds
Computer scientists in Japan have developed a way to break the WPA encryption system used in wireless routers in just one minute. The attack, which reads encrypted traffic sent between...
-
D-Link router's CAPTCHA flawed, WPA passphrase retrieved
It took only a week for the researchers at SourceSec to find a flaw in the CAPTCHA implementation of D-Link's recently introduced CAPTCHA in its routers, originally aimed to prevent DNS changing...
-
Introducing the world's smallest 802.11n adapter
I'm not sure there was a groundswell of opinion asking networking manufacturers for tinier USB-based network adapter, but smaller is always better, right? At least that's the thinking from Planex,...
-
-
WPA Wi-Fi encryption (partially) cracked
Rob McMillan at IDG has the scoop on new research that shows it's possible to partially crack the WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access) encryption standard. Full details of the theoretical attack is not...
-
No longer safe: WPA encryption cracked in 12 to 15 minutes
It was only a matter of time. Sure, we can all expect that some hacker with enough time and processing power would eventually crack a WPA-protected wireless network to decrypt someone's precious...
-
Don't assume WPA2 is more secure than WPA
AirDefense recently did a Wireless LAN security survey of New York City retailers where they declared two thirds of retailers insecure according to John Cox's story. According to the AirDefense...
-
The easy way to avoid a Wi-Fi virus
It's flu season—for you and your wireless router. A study by Indiana University proves that a virus can quickly spread among unsecured or WEP-encrypted routers in densely populated urban...
-
Why VPN can't replace Wi-Fi security
This entry is also available as a PDF download. Every time the subject of wireless LAN security comes up, people ask me about VPN as a solution for securing Wi-Fi. (Wi-Fi is the common marketing...
-
When you think WLAN, think ahead
Keeping your costs down and your WLAN secure requires a long-term strategy. A standard called 802.11i may be the light at the end of the tunnel, but mind the obstacles.
-
WPA: Worse news for consumers than corporate IT
Just about any company in the industry could announce that it's deploying some form of copy protection, and we wouldn't bat an eyelash. After all, copy protection as a form of anti-piracy has...
Additional Results
-
Firesheep's Real Lesson: Take Wi-Fi Security Seriously
Firesheep has people in a panic because it makes it easy to grab useful information when you're using public Wi-Fi. Big deal. You could always do that. The real worry is that businesses' Wi-Fi...
-
New cloud-based hacking service can crack Wi-Fi passwords in 20 minutes
A new, cloud-based hacking service says it can crack a WPA Wi-Fi network password in just 20 minutes.
-
Researchers crack WPA Wi-Fi encryption in 60 seconds
Computer scientists in Japan have developed a way to break the WPA encryption system used in wireless routers in just one minute. The attack, which reads encrypted traffic sent between...
-
D-Link router's CAPTCHA flawed, WPA passphrase retrieved
It took only a week for the researchers at SourceSec to find a flaw in the CAPTCHA implementation of D-Link's recently introduced CAPTCHA in its routers, originally aimed to prevent DNS changing...
-
Introducing the world's smallest 802.11n adapter
I'm not sure there was a groundswell of opinion asking networking manufacturers for tinier USB-based network adapter, but smaller is always better, right? At least that's the thinking from Planex,...
-
WPA Wi-Fi encryption (partially) cracked
Rob McMillan at IDG has the scoop on new research that shows it's possible to partially crack the WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access) encryption standard. Full details of the theoretical attack is not...
-
No longer safe: WPA encryption cracked in 12 to 15 minutes
It was only a matter of time. Sure, we can all expect that some hacker with enough time and processing power would eventually crack a WPA-protected wireless network to decrypt someone's precious...
-
ElcomSoft uses NVIDIA GPUs to speed up WPA/WPA2 brute-force attack
Russian security firm ElcomSoft has released software that leverages NVIDIA GPUs to speed up the brute-force cracking of WPA and WPA2 pre-shared WiFi keys.
The best of ZDNet, delivered
ZDNet Newsletters
Get the best of ZDNet delivered straight to your inbox
