Essay on WPA Encryption in Wi-Fi

Today, just like all other networks the security of Wireless computer networks is also a major issue. Keeping in mind the level of security they require in order to function properly, Wi-Fi encryption known as Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) are used which are basically a class of systems that are used to protect Wireless computer (Wi-Fi) networks. Until June2004 when IEEE released 802.11i standard, WPA was used with all wireless network interface cards. It had all the security features present in 802.11i and that were necessary for Wi-Fi products. The Wi-Fi alliance, which owns the name Wi-Fi and provides certification for all the products using this name are also the ones who created WPA security standards.

The usage of WPA differs from industry to industry. It is designed to use in both critical environment using 802.1X authentication server and in which different keys are distributed to each user as well as less secure environments where every user has the same password. Such less secure environments are also known as "pre-shared key" (PSK) mode. Data encryption is the major functionality of WPA and is performed using the RC4 stream cipher, with a 128-bit key and a 48-bit initialization vector (IV). To provide maximum security to the system, the WPA changes keys with every data packet. This process is known as the Temporal Key Integrity Protocol (TKIP). Besides encryption, the WPA also provides authentication services using a secure message authentication code known as Message Integrity Code (MIC). This security code prevents execution of repeated attacks with the help of a frame counter and also provides protection from forged packets. In case a WPA network experiences an attack, it will get automatically non-operational for 1minute. To reduce the risk of various unexpected attacks the size of the keys and IVs is usually increased, the number of packets sent through each key are decreased, and a secure verification message is added to the system..........................

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