Just because you’ve freed your business of wires doesn’t mean you’ve freed it of risks.

Some businesses probably still employ miles of cabling to connect computers, printers, and other devices and to the Internet, but it’s a method that is quickly becoming outdated, and new businesses don’t even consider messy, wired networks except for particular industry needs.

Wireless networking is becoming the standard. Unfortunately, just as we’ve become accustomed to no longer tripping over wires or fixing loose ethernet plugs, we’ve also become more aware that some of the old security issues still exist and that new ones have joined the risk pool.

On a more positive note, solutions to wireless cybersecurity are readily available, meaning wireless networking is as secure as traditional wired connections.

What are some of the vulnerabilities of wireless networks?

Wireless security depends upon preventing unauthorized access or damage to computers or data sitting on your WiFi network. Usually, the router handles wireless network security by encrypting and securing all wireless communication. If a bad actor succeeds in tapping into your wireless network, they are usually kept from viewing any data due to that encryption.

But there is still more to learn about wireless network security.

Wireless threats can come in different flavours. Some are specific to wireless networks such as rogue access and passive data capture. Others can attack both wired and wireless network setups with distributed-denial-of-service attacks.

Rogue Access

When hackers decide they’re going to target your organization or business’s wireless network, they may very well decide to gain rogue access. To accomplish this, they’ll set up their own WiFi within range of your wireless network and attempt to fool devices and people to log into the false network. From there, hackers are able to access data and information from legitimate devices that would otherwise be secure.

Passive Capture

In a similar vein to attempting rogue access, passive capturing is also performed by setting up a device within range of your business wireless network. The purpose here, however, is to capture and record data traffic flowing through your network. Using information obtained this way, hackers can analyze your online wireless activity, look for security holes in your system, or sift through the non-secure network use for potentially sensitive information on your business, employees, or customers.

#security #wearables #computer-science #engineering