Wi-Fi jamming is easier than expected
THE AUSTRALIAN COMPUTER Emergency Response Team has sent out warnings about just how easy it is to jam Wi-Fi networks, apparently as easy as using a PDA and a standard Wi-Fi networking card.
It was first thought that Wi-Fi networks, although accepted as jammable, would not be taken down without the use of large expensive equipment. However, Queensland University of Technology students have proved this false.
Although such attacks would be very difficult to protect against, individual computers aren't at risk – the only thing to worry about is the network going down. According to the New Scientist, the vulnerability is from the way Wi-Fi networks allocate transmission channels, and that Wi-Fi jamming is a denial of service attack.
Is Wi-Fi jamming something to really worry about, though? While it has the potential to be a nuisance, it shouldn't be anything more than that – network admins with the right tools have the power to find and shut down jammed points, allowing the rest of the network to function properly.
