CMS Security Handbook: The Comprehensive Guide for WordPress®, Joomla!®, Drupal™, and Plone®

Securing the Data in the Air

Originally, Wi-Fi technology was not designed with rigorous security, and, thus, had to progress quite a bit to be fairly secure. Wi-Fi standards are hampered by that “last mile” — that is, from the antenna to your machine.

Securing that last mile is the key your security. It does not take a great deal of effort nor technical skill to handle proper security. This section outlines a couple of points that can form the basis of your security framework.

There are a number of factors involved with securing the data in-flight — that is, while its being transmitted in the air from your router to your device.

The first security measure you can take is the use of Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), which will encrypt your data. Deploying a wireless router that supports the WPA2 standard will strengthen you against attacks on your wireless key. Ensuring that you physically secure the access point (that is, putting it up in a high place, or locking it in a room) will prevent tampering. Additionally, changing the System ID (SID) from the defaults, or disabling the broadcast of it, will help reduce exposure of your wireless network.

Having a basic set of wireless security tools will give you a view of how an outsider may look at your wireless network. As you read about some of the tools described here, think about your own infrastructure and how you may be exposed.

Inexpensive Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)

One of the hangovers from yesteryear is the idea that SSL is an expensive ...