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Road Warrior At Risk: The Dangers Of Ad-Hoc Wireless Networking
Airport Menace: The Wireless Peeping Tom
It never fails that something interesting happens to me at the airport. I've even met some famous people during my travels. A few months ago, I ran into Frank Bielec, from the TLC show, Trading Spaces. But one of my favorite things to do at the airport is browse the wireless Ethernet waves. I'm never really surprised at what I find. I'm just glad I know more about wireless Ethernet than the average road warrior. The Dangers Of Ad-Hoc Wireless Networking
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However, for those who are not using "Infrastructure Mode", and are configured to communicate from machine to machine, or "Ad-Hoc", there are a few things you should be aware of. A wireless Ad-Hoc network allows you to communicate with other wireless Ethernet systems without using a wireless access point. It's kind of a peer to peer configuration and it works rather well. The problem is, most people just set it up, and forget about it. At home, it's not a huge problem, but when your on the road, it could cause you a great deal of grief. The airport is probably the best place to find Ad-Hoc networks. Business men and women, delayed once again, power up their laptops and get to work completing the days tasks, or planning tomorrows agendas. I can't tell you how many systems I find in the airport configured this way. Not just in the terminal, but on the plane. About three months ago, just after we reached cruising altitude and were allowed to use our "approved electronic devices", I found that the gentleman two seats up from me had a laptop configured as Ad-Hoc. He walked by me about ten minutes later and commented on how much he liked my laptop. I thanked him, and asked if his laptop was on, and configured to use wireless Ethernet, he said yes. To make a long story short, I showed him that I could see his laptops wireless Ethernet and informed him of the danger. He asked me if I could access his hard drive, and I told him that it might be possible. He asked me to see if I could, so I obliged. After configuring my laptop to use the same IP address class as his, and typing "net use * hiscomputersIPAddressc$ "" /USER:administrator", I received a notice that the connection was successful and drive Z: was now mapped to his computer. I performed a directory listing of his hard drive and the guy almost had a heart attack! After this, he moved up to the seat next to mine and we spent the next hour or so configuring his laptop securely, starting with securing his computers local administrator account. At one point during the configuration, he made the statement that I got real lucky because his local admin account did not have a password. My response to him was, I get lucky quite often. Who Else Has Your Client List
The fact is, whether it be "Infrastructure Mode", or "Ad-Hoc" wireless Ethernet communications, if not properly configured and secured, can pose a significant risk. There are thousands of articles on the Internet about the dangers of improperly configured wireless networks, yet the number of unsecured networks seems to be getting greater, not less. Strength And Posture Does Reduce Your Risks
When I perform security assessments, I create a list of potential targets, and potential methods of compromise. I then prioritize that list by which system, with a particular vulnerability, may be easiest to compromise. Those at the bottom of the list typically never come on my radar screen; the best scenario it to keep of the radar altogether. Conclusion
1. Above all, make sure all your user accounts have strong passwords, especially those that have administrative control over your system; 2. Configure your wireless network to use some sort of encryption. I know there is a lot of concern about the "crackability" of WEP, but if this is all you have to work with, and then use it. It is still helpful; 3. If possible, use MAC addresses filtering to restrict unwanted systems from attaching to your wireless network; 4. Make sure the firmware for your AP's and wireless Ethernet cards are up to date. These updates can be found on your card or AP's support site. Remember, if you are compromised over your wireless network it can be near impossible to track down where the attack came from. Worse yet, think about how many systems become compromised, and no one ever knows it? About The Author
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