Growing need for wireless security policies

The escalating use of wireless technology demands formal corporate security policies governing that use, according to users and analysts at a Gartner security conference in Washington DC. According to Gartner, this included putting in place dedicated intrusion-detection systems for wireless networks, locking down wireless-enabled systems or installing personal firewalls, and keeping all wireless Lans outside the corporate firewall. Companies need to think beyond simply securing WLan access points when looking at the potential problems created by wireless use, said Gartner analyst John Pescatore.

Instead, the individual client devices inside a WLan will pose the biggest security risks to corporations for the next several years.

Unprotected wireless client devices such as notebooks and handheld devices can be exploited as peers or access points to break into corporate WLans where they can remain undetected indefinitely, he said.

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