Cisco Systems WRTP54G Network Router User Manual


 
Wireless-G Broadband Router with 2 Phone Ports
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Appendix B: Wireless Security
Security Threats Facing Wireless Networks
Change your SSID regularly so that any hackers who have gained access to your wireless network will have to
start from the beginning in trying to break in.
MAC Addresses. Enable MAC Address filtering. MAC Address filtering will allow you to provide access to only
those wireless nodes with certain MAC Addresses. This makes it harder for a hacker to access your network with
a random MAC Address.
WEP Encryption. Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) is often looked upon as a cure-all for wireless security
concerns. This is overstating WEP’s ability. Again, this can only provide enough security to make a hacker’s job
more difficult.
There are several ways that WEP can be maximized:
1. Use the highest level of encryption possible
2. Use “Shared Key” authentication
3. Change your WEP key regularly
WPA. Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) is the newest and best available standard in Wi-Fi security. Two modes are
available: Pre-Shared Key and RADIUS. Pre-Shared Key gives you one encryption methods: TKIP (Temporal Key
Integrity Protocol), which utilizes a stronger encryption method and incorporates Message Integrity Code (MIC) to
provide protection against hackers.
WPA Pre-Shared Key. If you do not have a RADIUS server, Select the type of algorithm, TKIP or AES, enter a
password in the Pre-Shared key field of 8-64 characters, and enter a Group Key Renewal period time
between 0 and 99,999 seconds, which instructs the Router or other device how often it should change the
encryption keys.
IMPORTANT: Always
remember that each device in
your wireless network MUST
use the same encryption
method and encryption key or
your wireless network will not
function properly.