I have a Wireless G/N router and I am currently using it for 2 years now. What concerned me most is the type of security encryption I will use to secure my network. Is WPA more secured than WEP?
Hi Randysfdma,
Allow me to start my answer with an advice of not to use WEP encryption because for me it creates a fake feeling of security and below is a little clarification of WPA compared to WEP.
WiFi Protected Access (WPA) is a security standard adopted by the WiFi Alliance consortium.
The level of security offered by WPA is way beyond anything that WEP can offer as WPA uses Temporal Key Integrity Protocol (TKIP). TKIP is designed to allow WEP to be upgraded. meaning that all the main building blocks of WEP are still present, but a new corrective measures are added to overcome security problem. WEP used Weak IV values that are susceptible to attack. WPA avoids using known weak IV values.Â
A different secret key is used for each packet, and the way the key is scrambled with the secret key is more complex. Master keys are used directly in WEP Master Keys are never used directly in WPA. A hierarchy of keys is used, all derived from the Master.
A previous WEP attack demonstrated that WEP encryption can be broken in 3 minutes proving that it is not even worth it to use WEP encryption to secure your connection. the danger remains that your WPA pass key can be broken using dictionary attack but it is still a lot more secure than WEP.
