WEP is the first and the lowest standard of wireless security. You will hear security experts say that WEP can be cracked in 5 minutes, which is true, that once you’ve sniffed the traffic network sufficient to weak IVs. WEP can be cracked, because it uses the same key for each data frame, so with enough traffic, you can capture the key. WEP is more difficult to crack because firmwares update to help prevent the transmission of data packets small.
WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access) is the improved version of WEP. WPAs main response to the vulnerability of WEP is that instead of using the same key for each data frame it changes the keys. The key rotation is in much more difficult for a hacker to enter the key shared together. WPA also allows wireless clients to roam from access point to access point while working in a corporate environment over effectively.
WPA uses two types of encryption, TKIP (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol) and AES (Advanced Encryption Standard). AES is the most advance encryption than TKIP. Some wireless adapters can not support the encryption AES and you must take this into account when planning your network wirelessly.
WPA2 also improves the ability for customers to switch wireless access point to access point. There are different ways to implement WPA and WPA2:
WPA-PSK with TKIP PSK stands for Pre Shared Key. The client and access point or wireless router will be every action that is a password encrypted with TKIP.
WPA-PSK with AES is the same as above, but you will use the encryption AES. Remember that you must monitor your network wirelessly, as you may have more lost packets with AES if your firmware is not updated on your access point or wireless adapter.
WPA2-PSK Mixed, this solution still uses the shared key, but will accept either TKIP or AES customers. This option is available only if you use WPA2
WPA Radius - This is the most secure wireless at this time. WPA turned the key, TKIP or AES encrypts the key and the RADIUS server authenticates the user. User authentication is very important because, with a RADIUS server, you do not really know who is using your network wirelessly. RADIUS server is essentially a database of user names with passwords. If your PSK is a leak to the wrong person or stolen in some way, you have no control over who accesses your network. If you use a server RAIDUS you have complete control over who enters your network wirelessly. RADIUS servers can create policies that limit what resources the network wireless user has at his disposal. A great policy to implement a RADIUS server is to limit the hours and days your users can access the network. If your hours are only during the day you do not want people to use it at night. In addition, you can use a RADIUS server to perform a spot wireless access, which will handle billing and customer portal.
Remember that if you use WPA2, you will need to load the Microsoft patch and update your wireless adapter’s driver.