WEP
WEP security? Security that stops casual intruders only!
WEP stands for Wired Equivalent Privacy and it was the first widely used technology meant to secure wireless network transmissions and make them as secure as traditional wired networks (thus the name of wired equivalent privacy). It is sometimes mistakenly referred to as Wireless Encryption Protocol but it's an honest mistake because that's what it does - it applies an encryption algorithm to the wireless data to disguise the data as it is flowing through the air (but it doesn't do it very well). There are much better replacement technologies available today but Wired Equivalent Privacy security is better than nothing, if only a little better.
This wireless security protocol uses a key, usually a text phrase supplied by the user that is used to generate a hexadecimal value, that is then run through the RC4 cipher. Then each packet of data to be transmitted is encrypted with the cipher and then decrypted once it reaches its destination. The process of encryption and decryption does slow down the speed a tad but encrypting wireless data transmissions prevents eavesdropping and also prevents outsiders from joining the wireless network without the key.
The problem with WEP is that the key is pretty easy to steal by watching the encrypted stream of data for a while.
Shortly after this technology was first introduced, researchers discovered that the "secret" key could be cracked, or learned, by collecting and analyzing a large number of encrypted packets. It turns out that each packet of data contains a tiny piece of the secret key and as the encrypted packets fly through the air, they can be "sniffed" or picked up by anyone with a wireless network adapter. The encrypted packets can be saved and analyzed by computer programs which slowly piece the secret key back together from the tiny pieces it finds.
At first, most thought that it would still be a useful security protocol as the initial tests showed that the number of encrypted packets required was so large that it would take weeks of collecting data and days of number crunching to actually crack a 128-bit key. Unfortunately, the amount of data required and the time necessary to piece the key back together has steadily and dramatically diminished.
It now takes only a few minutes (or less) to crack WEP protected wireless networks. As I already mentioned, it is better than nothing, but only by a few minutes.
A real world analogy would be locking your car doors at the mall. Locked car doors will stop kids who are randomly lifting door handles looking to rip off your stuff but an experienced car thief who wants your car will use a slim jim or other specialized tool and be into your car in seconds flat. It might stop the kid next door looking to steal free internet access but it won't stop an experienced hacker with specialized tools from getting in - it might slow him down for a minute, but that's all.
Another wireless security protocol called WPA has replaced the flawed Wired Eqivalent Privacy protocol and is available in newer wireless devices. You can learn more about the WEP replacement, WPA here. WPA is presently considered "unbreakable" but most encryption claims such as this are eventually proven wrong.
If your older wireless device isn't capable of using the newer WPA (check with the manufacturer as many have provided firmware upgrades for WPA) using WEP in conjunction with MAC filters can still be a fairly effective security protocol.
