Wireless

Source: internetnews

In a rush to improve productivity, many enterprises have overlooked the need to secure the flow of data over their wireless local area networks (define), according to new research from Jupitermedia's research arm.

The study, released here today at 802.11 Planet Conference & Expo, finds that only 28 percent of enterprises are using point-to-point virtual private networks (define). Meanwhile, the next Wi-Fi standard, which includes security measures, is yet unratified.

Source: Wired

At first glance, the South Pacific island of Niue doesn't appear to be a competitive threat to some of the world's largest technology companies. The country, which is about 100 square miles, has 1,750 residents, who survive on an annual budget of $5.5 million, according to a tourist website.

Wi-Fi networks have, up until this point, been a bit like the Wild West: exciting, but difficult to control and keep safe. Now, a host of new management and security options are springing up as Wi-Fi penetrates corporate environments. This article reviews the next-generation enterprise Wi-Fi products that are designed to quell ongoing security fears

Source: The Inquirer

Source: BBC

Hopes that the roll-out of wireless broadband networks - so-called wi-fi hotspots - will result in a profits bonanza will be dashed, the technology consultancy Forrester has warned.
"With all the hype today about the rollout of... public hotspots, it's as if the dot.com boom and bust never happened", said technology analyst Lars Godell.

Source: IT Papers

Although security protocols and mechanisms for protecting WLANs are available, most wireless networks remain open to attack. Understanding the vulnerabilities and options for protection are key to establishing a security system, and this white paper aims to expose IT managers to both older and newer protocols for today's WLANs.

Source: GCN

Securing wireless networks remains a challenge for agencies that have to fit security into their business cases but must work under policies that lag behind the rapid advance of technology, a federal-sector consultant said today.

“Technology is the simple part,” said Howard Stern, senior vice president of FSI of McLean, Va. “It’s all the other stuff around the technology,” from setting business practices to educating users, “that’s the hard part.”

Source: Wireless Newsfactor

The inadequacy of the Wired Equivalent Privacy protocol has delayed widespread adoption of wireless LANs in many corporations. While most network administrators and end users understand the productivity benefits of cutting the Ethernet cord, most worry about the risk of doing so.

Source: Wireless Newsfactor

Wireless LANs became the industry's laughingstock when reports surfaced about "parking lot attacks" on corporate networks. Now, WLANs are shaping up as the battleground for enhanced security products that could lead the way for the entire network industry.

Source: Reuters

High-speed wireless computer networks, or Wi-Fi, are notoriously vulnerable to unauthorized intrusion, but that may actually help to sell companies on the need to embrace the technology.

That counter-intuitive logic, put forth by a leading promoter of the technology, reflects a trend at many companies where employees are taking part in the Wi-Fi computing craze whether their employers are ready or not.