Security Evaluation of Wireless Network Access Points

Abstract

The paper focuses on the real-world usage of IEEE 802.11 wireless network encryption and Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) function. A brief history on the development of encryption methods and WPS is given. Wireless scanning of 802.11 networks in a capital city has been performed, and the results of it have been analysed. To ascertain the knowledge about the security of wireless networks of the average user, an online survey has been conducted. To test the security of encryption methods and WPS function, practical attacks against private test wireless networks have been made. The authors conclude that the safest way to set up 802.11 network with a pre-shared key is to use Wi-Fi Protected Access 2 (WPA2) encryption without support for WPS function. Statistics in Riga shows that networks are often configured otherwise and thus vulnerable to attacks. Survey results prove that respondents are not well informed regarding the security of wireless networks.