Using the Wireless Networking Utility from Verizon
17
1
2
3
4
5
6
section
Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP)
is a less secure, but more
widely adopted wireless security protocol. Depending on the security level
(64- or 128-bit), the user will be asked to input a 10- or 26-character hex
key. A hex key is a combination of letters, a–f, and numbers, 0–9.
Wireless Protected Access (WPA)
is the new standard in
the wireless security. However, not all wireless cards and adapters
support this technology. Please check your wireless adapter’s user
manual to check if it supports WPA. Instead of a hex key, WPA uses
only passphrases, which are much easier to remember.
The following section, intended for the home, home office, and small
office user, presents a few different ways to maximize the security of
your wireless network.
At the time of this User Manual’s publication, there are four
encryption methods available.
Encryption Methods:
Wired Equivalent Privacy
(
Wired Equivalent Privacy (Wired Equivalent Privacy
WEP
(WEP (
)
WEP
is a common protocol that adds security to all Wi-Fi-compliant
wireless products. WEP gives wireless networks the equivalent level
of privacy protection as a comparable wired network.
Name
64-Bit Wired
Equivalent
Privacy
128-Bit Wired
Equivalent
Privacy
Wi-Fi
Protected
Access-TKIP
Wi-Fi Protected
Access 2
Acronym
64-bit WEP
128-bit WEP
WPA-TKIP/
AES (or just
WPA)
WPA2-AES (or
just WPA2)
Security
Good
Better
Best
Best
Features
Static keys
Static keys
Dynamic key
encryption
and mutual
authentication
Dynamic key
encryption
and mutual
authentication
Encryption
keys based on
RC4 algorithm
(typically 40-bit
keys)
More secure than
64-bit WEP using
a key length of
104 bits plus
24 additional
bits of system-
generated data
TKIP
(Temporal
Key Integrity
Protocol)
added so
that keys are
rotated and
encryption is
strengthened
AES (Advanced
Encryption
Standard) does
not cause any
throughput loss