Closing Up Wireless Security Holes

"Corporate concern about WLAN security goes beyond eavesdropping, because they understand that 'rogue access points' can disrupt enterprise wireless LANs," said Ira Brodsky, president of Datacomm Research, a market research firm that focuses on the wireless industry. Because they offer users network-access flexibility as they move from place to place, wireless LANs -- often called WLANs -- have gained significant acceptance. While the technology has proven to be a boon to maintenance technicians, salespersons and programmers, it has been a sometimes vexing security problem for IT managers.

Starting with the first version of the 802.11 standard, which was crafted in 1997, WLAN security has been decent at best and porous at worst. However, the problems associated with wireless security might soon be addressed as products supporting a new standard make their way from vendor development laboratories to the marketplace.

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