he name of a popular wireless networking technology that

uses radio waves to provide wireless high-speed internet and network connections. The Wi-Fi Alliance organization that owns the Wi-Fi registered trademark specifically defines as any wireless local area network (WLAN) products that are based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards. Initially, Wi-Fi was used in place of only the 2.4GHz 802.11b standard; however the Wi-Fi Alliance has expanded the generic use of the Wi-Fi term to include any type of network or WLAN product based on any of the 802.11 standards. Any computer network, which connects two more wifi devices via a wifi router, is termed as wifi network. In simple words, if you connect to internet via wifi router, then it simple means you are connected via a wifi network. It can be home, work or even a coffee shop. Wireless Internet access is a huge convenience that we have got used to, but it is important to secure them. Most internet users do not even realize that connecting their system to web through WiFi routers can make them more vulnerable to hackers. Components of the Wi-Fi Network A Wi-Fi hotspot is an internet access point in a public location such as a caf, airports, libraries, hospitals, coffee shops or hotel where you can connect to the internet at broadband speed using a wireless-enabled device such a laptop, WiFi phone, or other suitable portable devices. Both paid and free hotspots continue to grow.

A wireless network uses radio waves, just like cell phones, televisions and radios do. In fact, communication across a wireless network is a lot like two-way radio communication.

A computers wireless adapter translates data into a radio signal and transmits it using an antenna. A wireless router receives the signal and decodes it. The router sends the information to the internet using a physical, wired Ethernet connection. The process also works in reverse, with the router receiving information from the Internet, translating it into a radio signal and sending it to the computers wireless adapter. The radios used for WiFi communication are very similar to the radios used for walkie-talkies, cell phones and other devices. They can transmit and receive radio waves, and they can convert 1s and 0s into radio waves and convert the radio waves back into 1s and 0s. But WiFi radios have a few notable differences from other radios: The five types of equipment found in wireless home networks are: Wireless network adapters Wireless access points Wireless routers Add-on wireless antennas Wireless signal boosters

Some of this equipment is optional depending on your home network configuration.

Wireless Network Adapters : Each computer you wish to connect to a WLAN must possess a wireless network adapter. Wireless adapters are sometimes also called NICs. Wireless adapters for desktop computers are often small PCI cards or sometimes card-like USB adapters. Wireless network adapters contain a radio transceiver. Wireless Access Points : A wireless access point serves as the central WLAN communication station called base stations. Access points are thin, lightweight boxes. Access points join a

wireless LAN to a pre-existing wired Ethernet network. Home networkers typically install an access point when they already own a broadband router and want to add wireless computers to their current setup. You must use either an access point or a wireless router to implement hybrid wired/wireless home networking. Otherwise, you probably dont need an access point. Wireless Routers : A wireless router is a wireless access point with several other useful functions added. Like wired broadband routers, wireless routers also support Internet connection sharing and include firewall technology for improved network security. Wireless Antennas : Wireless network adapters, access points, and routers all utilize an antenna to assist in receiving signals on the WLAN. Some wireless antennas, like those on adapters, are internal to the unit. Other antennas, like those on many access points, are externally visible. Wireless Signal Boosters : Some manufacturers of wireless access points and routers also sell a small piece of equipment called a signal booster. Installed together with a wireless access point or router, a signal booster serves to increase the strength of the base station transmitter. Its possible to use signal boosters and add-on antennas together, to improve both wireless network transmission and reception simultaneously. Both antennas and signal boosters can be a useful addition to improve network performance in some cases. Secure Threat to Wi-Fi Network There is no physical protection of the wireless network. The risk of the data sharing is high as packets are sent through the airwaves, and an attacker can easily use various wireless sniffing tools. Most wireless devices use a broad spectrum, so it is very easy to identify the signals, which makes all the more vulnerable to hackers. The main concern has to do with the mobility of users who expect flowless reception between access points. There is no need to re-login and restart network applications. WLANs do raise the issue of the security due to other inherent features such as radio waves being easier to intercept than physical wires. A practice known as Wardriving involves individuals equipped with a computer, a wireless card, and a GPS device driving through areas in search of wireless networks and identifying the specific coordinates of a network location. Attackers who participate in or take advantage of wardriving have malicious intent and could use this information to hijack your home wireless network or intercept the connection between your computer and a particular hotspot. Common Exploits of Wireless Networks In general, attacks on wireless networks fall into four basic categories:

1. 2. 3. 4.

Passive Attacks Active Attacks MITM Attacks Jamming

A passive attack occurs when someone eavesdrops on the networks traffics. Armed with a wireless network adapter that supports promiscuous mode, eavesdroppers can capture network traffic for analysis using easily available tools. Once an attacker has gained sufficient information from passive attack, they can lunch an active attack against the network. There are a potentially large number of active attack can be lunched against a wireless network. These include, but are not limited to, unauthorized access, spoofing, denial of service, and flooding , as well as the introducing of malware.

Placing a rough access point within range of wireless of station is a wireless specific variation of MIMT attack. If the attacker knows the SSID in use by the network and rough AP has enough strength, wireless users will have no way of knowing that they are connecting to an unauthorized AP. Jamming is one of many exploits used compromise the wireless environment.If an attacker truly wanted to compromise your LAN and wireless security, the most effective approach would be to send random unauthenticated packets to every wireless station in the network. Hackers do the following steps for hacking wireless networks. Find networks to attacks Choose network to attack Analyze network Crack WEP key Sniff network

Denial of Service attacks (DoS) Wireless networks are extremely vulnerable to DoS attacks. It can slow the network to crawling speeds or actually force it to quit working. In the Brute Force DoS attack method, a huge flood of packets can use up all of the networks resources and force it to shut down, or a very strong radio signal that totally dominates the airwaves can render access points and radio cards useless. As wireless networks send information via radio waves on public frequencies, thus they are susceptible to vulnerable. A hacker can initiate a packet-based brute force DoS attack by using other systems on the network to send the useless packets to the server. This adds significant overhead on the network and takes away useable bandwidth from legitimate users. How to secure your WiFi network ? Here are some simple ways to secure your WiFi network and prevent its misuse. Change Default Administrator Usernames and Passwords - At the core of most Wi-Fi home networks is an access point or router. Most routers or access points are preconfigured with default administrator passwords to simplify setup. These default passwords are easily found online, so they dont provide any protection. Change the username and password for your Wifi setup immediately after the first login. Change Default SSID- The SSID (service set identifier) is a unique identifier that wireless networking devices use to establish and maintain wireless connectivity. SSID acts as a single shared password between access points and clients. Security concerns arise when the default values are not changed, as these units can be easily compromised. Immediately change the default SSID to make it more difficult to guess when configuring wireless security on your network. Change the Password - Change administrator password on the router from time to time like you should change any other password so as to minimise the risk to your network. How you change your password varies from router to router. But remember not to have a wireless network without password. Stop Publicly Broadcasting your SSID - The broadcast works like an invitation to the hackers whore searching for just that opportunity. In Wi-Fi networking, the wireless

access point or router typically broadcasts the network name (SSID) over the air at regular intervals. Broadcasting was designed for mobile hotspots where Wi-Fi clients may roam in and out of range. In the home, this feature is unnecessary, and it increases the likelihood someone will try to log in to your home network. If you turn off SSID broadcasting, you can keep casual users away from seeing your network. Enable MAC Address Filtering - Each piece of hardware connected to a network has physical address or MAC. Access points and routers keep track of the MAC addresses for all devices that connect to them. You can restrict or allow access to your network by filtering MAC addresses. Turn on WPA / WEP Encryption - If the information sent back and forth over your Wifi network isnt adequately encrypted, a hacker can easily tap into the network and monitor your activity. One of the best ways to secure your WiFi network is through encryption. There are primarily two encryption WiFi standards - Wireless Equivalent Protocol (WEP) and WiFi Protected Access (WPA).

WEP is the original wireless encryption standard, which is now outdated. The main problem with it is that it can be easily cracked. Cracking a wireless network means defeating the encryption so that you can establish a connection without being invited. If you use WEP encryption, change your encryption key regularly. WPA-PSK (WPA-Personal) is a more secure alternative to WEP. However, since it is newer, it is not as widely supported. WPA-Enterprise as the name suggests, this method of network encryption is designed for business use. Setup for WPA-Enterprise is more complex than for other types of encryption, and it requires special network infrastructure. WPA2 is newest type of wireless encryption, it provides the highest level of encryption available. WPA2 encryption should be your first choice if your wireless router, all of your wireless computers and devices support it. Do not Auto-Connect to Open Wi-Fi Networks - If you connect to every available wifi network automatically, you will inevitably end up connecting to dummy wifi networks designed specifically to catch unsuspecting users. Most computers provide a wifi setting that will configure your computer to automatically connect to any open wifi network without notifying you. Never select the connect to available wifi networks automatically setup option under your Network Connections window. Assign Static IP Addresses to devices - Dynamic IP allocation also works to the advantage of attackers, who can easily obtain valid IP addresses from networks DHCP pool. Turn off DHCP on the router or access point, set a fixed IP address range instead and then configure each connected device to match. Using a private IP address range (like 10.0.0.x) prevents computers from being directly reached from the Internet. Install a Firewall - While it is a good security practice to install a firewall on your network, you should also install a firewall directly on your wireless devices (a host-based firewall). For added security, consider installing and running personal firewall software on each computer connected to the router. Maintain Anti-virus Software - You can reduce the damage attackers may be able to inflict on your network and wireless computer by installing anti-virus software and

keeping your virus definitions up to date. Many of these programs also have additional features that may protect against or detect spyware and Trojan horses. Ensure Access Points are placed securely - The performance of a Wi-Fi home network greatly depends on signal strength of the wireless router or wireless access point (base station). In the centre of a room/office etc to minimize its signal strength outside the office.