A layered security architecture for corporate 802.11 wireless networks

Abstract

We investigate the security aspects of wireless local area networks and discuss the weaknesses associated with various conventional 802.11 security protocols such as WEP (wired equivalent privacy) and 802.1x. We propose an architecture to control access to corporate 802.11 wireless networks, based on the privileges and location of users, using tested wired network components such as VPNs and firewalls. The presented architecture reduces the security risks in enterprise level deployment of wireless LANs.