Worry Number One

Gaining a better understanding of WLAN security elements and employing best
practices can go a long way in enabling enterprises to reap the benefits of
wireless networking

Many of us
while thinking of a network visualize a closet of routers and switches with
flickering lights and fed by bundles of wires. In the last decade the wired
network has become the norm for businesses large and small; indeed, it's a
primary tool to achieve increased business productivity. These wires are akin to
a company's nervous system, carrying vital information to those who need it.

But even as companies
have grown more dependent on networks, modern business imperatives-such as
staying close to customers, providing flexible work environments, outsourcing,
and working with leaner staffs-have forced employees to look for alternatives
to wired network. Fortunately, wireless local-area networks (LANs) provide the
link between wired networks and mobile workers. This means a big boost to
employee productivity. As people move around throughout the course of a workday,
they can continue to send and receive e-mail and other communications and access
company information instead of waiting until they return to their workstations.

According to
AMI-Partners, by 2004, 45% of US businesses with 100 to 999 employees and 16% of
businesses with fewer than 100 employees had implemented WLANs. This trend is
echoed by Synergy Research Group too, which states that the wireless LAN market
is expected to reach nearly $3.4 bn by the end of 2005 and growing to 78% by
2009.

With wireless fast
becoming ubiquitous, having the power to transform the way a company operates,
companies big and small are reaping benefits of this revolution. As per a Yankee
Group survey, more than 20 mn SMB employees in the US are mobile workers,
representing more than half of all mobile workers in the US!

The Real World Threat

For many of us seeing is believing, but this emerging business tool can't
be seen with the human eye. Therefore when it comes to securing a wireless
network, out of sight should definitely not mean out of mind!

Indeed, security is
the biggest concerns to the adoption of wireless LANs. And it's not just a
big-company worry. When it comes to wireless networking, security is still the
number one concern for companies across all sizes.

Gaining a better
understanding of wireless LAN security elements and employing some best
practices can go a long way toward enabling enterprises to reap the benefits of
wireless networking.

Many wireless networks
are not properly secured or-even worse-are completely unsecured.
Fortunately, both user knowledge about security and the solutions offered by
technology vendors are improving. Today's wireless networks feature
comprehensive security capabilities and when these networks are properly
protected, companies can confidently take advantage of the benefits they offer.

Security Elements

Since most wireless access points come from the factory in 'open
access', so that all security features are turned off, enterprises need to
ensure that they turn these features on.

Three actions can help
to secure a wireless network: protecting data, while it's being transmitted
through encryption; discouraging unauthorized users through authentication; and
preventing unofficial connections through the elimination of rogue access
points.

Authentication:

Enterprises need to ensure that individuals who use the wireless network are
authorized to do so. Unique logins and passwords are the basis of
authentication, but additional tools can make authentication more secure and
reliable. The best authentication is per-user, per session mutual authentication
between the user and the authentication source.

Rogue Access Points: A
well-meaning employee who enjoys a wireless network at home might want to enjoy
the same freedom at work. He or she might purchase a cheap access point and plug
it into a network jack without asking permission. These are known as rogue
access points, and the majority of these are installed by employees-not
malicious intruders. Even company-sanctioned access points, when configured
improperly, can be security risks.

Encryption:
To make
sure that data can't be read, and to protect data from being altered as it's
transmitted between an access point and a wireless device, enterprises need to
use encryption. In a basic sense, encryption is like secret code: It translates
the data into gibberish that only the intended recipient understands. Encryption
requires that both the sender and receiver have a key to decode the transmitted
data. The most secure encryption uses very complicated keys, or algorithms, that
change regularly to protect data.

Wireless Security Policy
and Network Management

Having set the security processes in place, an enterprise needs to ensure
that its employees comply with the security policies set by the administrator.
Different security settings can be set for different users or groups of users
based on their needs and functions. This allows enterprises to cost effectively
use a single access point to support multiple user groups with different
security settings and security requirements- all while keeping the network
secure and protected.

It is also important
to consider wireless network security in the context of overall network security
and network management. A common management system increases efficiency for
network administrators. Wireless LAN security even when integrated with overall
network management works only if it's turned on and used consistently across the
entire wireless LAN. That's why user policies are also an important part of good
security practices.

The challenge is to
devise a wireless LAN user policy that's simple enough for people to abide by,
yet secure enough to protect the network. Today, that's an easier balance to
strike because WPA and WPA2 are built into Wi-Fi certified access points and
client devices.

An enterprises
wireless LAN security policy should also cover when and how employees can use
public hot spots, the use of personal devices on the company's wireless
network, the forbidding of rogue devices, and a strong password policy.

In an era in where
instant access to information is a common expectation, network connectivity must
be available wherever it's needed-indoors, outdoors, or in vehicles.
Organizations of all sizes and in a wide range of industries are implementing
wireless LANs to provide this access. The ultimate goal of all enterprises is to
create a secure wireless 'cloud' over the entire community changing the way
people work, live, learn and play.

Parag Arora, business
development manager, Cisco Systems, India & SAARC 

vadmail@cybermedia.co.in