802.11 Wi-Fi Standards
These refer to a set of standards for wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, developed by IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers).
- 802.11a → Operates in the 5GHz band with a maximum data rate of 54 Mbps
- 802.11b → Operates in the 2.4GHz band with a maximum data rate of 11 Mbps
- 802.11g → Operates in the 2.4GHz band with a maximum data rate of 54 Mbps
- 802.11n → Operates in both 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands with a maximum data rate of 600Mbps, introduced MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) (Uses multiple antennas to send and receive data)
- 802.11ac → Operates in the 5GHz band with a maximum data rate of 1Gbps and above, uses advanced MIMO and wider channels.
- 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) → Operates in both 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands, designed to improve efficiency, capacity, and performance in dense environments.
Wi-Fi Security Protocols
These protect the data transmitted over the Wi-Fi networks through various encryption methods and security mechanisms.
- WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy)
The original Wi-Fi security standard, it uses RC4 stream cipher with 40-bit and later 104-bits keys. It’s considered weak due to flaws in the encryption algorithm, making it susceptible to attacks.
- WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access)
Introduced as an interim improvement over WEP while the 802.11i standard was being developed. Uses TKIP (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol) with RC4. Improved over WEP but still has vulnerabilities, especially with TKIP.
- WPA2 (Wi-Fi Protected Access 2)
The full implementation of the 802.11i standard. Uses AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) with CCMP (Counter Mode Cipher Block Chaining Message Authentication Code Protocol). It’s stronger than WPA, considered highly secure when properly configured. With PMF activated it can help against deauthentication packets.
- WPA3 (Wi-Fi Protected Access 3)
The latest Wi-Fi security standard. It uses SAW (Simultaneous Authentication of Equals) instead of PSK for better protection against brute-force attacks. Improved security features including better protection for weak passwords and individual data encryption on open networks. This protocol mandates the use of PMF, providing robust defence against deauthentication attacks.
While the handshake can be captured in all protocols, the WPA3-SAE significantly enhances security by making captured handshakes less useful for attackers as the key material used to derive session keys is not exposed.
