An Overview of Wireless Local Area Networks

(WLAN)

Ibrahim Al Shourbaji

Computer Networks Department

Jazan University
Jazan 82822-6649, Saudi Arabia

Abstract
network) has become one of the most popular networking
Wireless Communication is an application of science and environments.
technology that has come to be vital for modern existence.
From the early radio and telephone to current devices such as Companies and individuals have interconnected computers
mobile phones and laptops, accessing the global network has with local area networks (LANs).The LAN user has at their
become the most essential and indispensable part of our disposal much more information, data and applications than
lifestyle. Wireless communication is an ever developing field, they could otherwise store by themselves. In the past all local
and the future holds many possibilities in this area. One area networks were wired together and in a fixed location.
expectation for the future in this field is that, the devices can Wireless technology has helped to simplify networking by
be developed to support communication with higher data rates enabling multiple computer users simultaneously share
and more security. Research in this area suggests that a
dominant means of supporting such communication
capabilities will be through the use of Wireless LANs. As the resources in a home or business without additional or intrusive
deployment of Wireless LAN increases well around the globe, wiring.
it is increasingly important for us to understand different
technologies and to select the most appropriate one . The increased demands for mobility and flexibility in our daily
life are demands that lead the development
This paper provides a detailed study of the available wireless
LAN technologies and the concerned issues ,will give a brief 2. What is a WLAN ?
description of what wireless LANs are ,the need of Wireless
LAN ,History of wireless LAN , advantages of Wireless To know WLAN we need first to know the definition of LAN,
Networks ,with summarizing the related work on WLAN in which is simply a way of connecting computers together
academic area , Wireless LAN technologies , some risks within a single organization, and usually in a single site
attacks against wireless technologies , suggesting some (Franklin, 2010).
recommendations to protect wireless LAN network from
attack , Finally we propose some research issues should be According to Cisco report in 2000 wireless local-area network
focused on in the future. . (WLAN) does exactly what the name implies: it provides all
the features and benefits of traditional LAN technologies such
Keywords: Wireless Networking, Security, 802.11 Standard, as Ethernet and Token Ring without the limitations of wires or
Network security, cables. Obviously, from the definition the WLAN is the same
as LAN but without wires.
I. INTRODUCTION
(Clark et al, 1978) defined WLAN as a data communication
Computer technology has rapidly growth over the past decade, network, typically a packet communication network, limited in
Much of this can be attributed to the internet as many geographic scope.’ A local area network generally provides
computers now have a need to be networked together to high-bandwidth communication over inexpensive transmission
establish an online connection. As the technology continues to media.
move from wired to wireless, the wireless LAN (local area
While (Flickenger, 2005) see it as a group of wireless access 4. History of WLAN
points and associated infrastructure within a limited
geographic area, such as an office building or building (Negus & Petrick, 2009)
campus, that is capable of radio communications. Wireless The wireless local area network (WLAN) is today everywhere
LANs are usually implemented as extensions of existing wired device often taken for granted as a default interface for
LANs to provide enhanced user mobility. networked devices by users and manufacturers alike. But not
very long ago, it was most definitely not so.
Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) links two or more
devices using a wireless communication method. It usually
provides a connection through an Access Point (AP) to the
wider internet (Putman, 2005). In the early 1990’s WLANs found almost no success in selling
to enterprise or campus environments as wired LAN
This gives users the ability to move around within a local replacements or enablers of mobility. The WLAN products of
coverage area while still be connected to the network. Just as that day were far too slow, too expensive, too bulky, and too
the mobile phone frees people to make a phone call from power hungry. Furthermore, mobile network connectivity was
anywhere in their home, a WLAN permits people to use their simply not yet a killer application. The “survivor” companies
computers anywhere in the network area. of that age were the ones who focused on adapting WLAN
technology to specialty niches such as retailing, hospitality,
In WLAN Connectivity no longer implies attachment. Local and logistics.
areas are measured not in feet or meters, but miles or
kilometers. An infrastructure need not be buried in the ground
or hidden behind the walls, so we can move and change it at
the speed of the organization. Organizations that went after the “big” market of enterprise
networking, and there were many that did, either went
bankrupt or became largely scaled back divisions of large
companies.

3. Why would anyone want a wireless

LAN? By the middle of the 1990’s the WLAN industry had mainly
consolidated into 4 players, But in the late 1990’s the first
There are many reasons: (perm, 2000) significant market opportunity for WLANs emerged and it was
quite unlike what the WLAN industry to date had largely
1- An increasing number of LAN users are becoming envisioned.
mobile. These movable users require that they are connected
to the network regardless of where they are because they want
simultaneous access to the network. This makes the use of
cables, or wired LANs, impractical if not impossible. The opportunity was the sharing of a broadband Internet
connection within the home amongst multiple networked
devices such as PCs initially, but inevitably also voice over
2- Wireless LANs are very easy to install. There is no Internet protocol (VoIP) phones, gaming consoles, media
requirement for wiring every workstation and every room. streamers and home automation appliances. Consumers, not
This ease of installation makes wireless LANs inherently enterprise IT managers, became the ones to choose what
flexible. If a workstation must be moved, it can be done easily WLAN technology and products would achieve the de facto
and without additional wiring, cable drops or reconfiguration standard for the decade to follow.
of the network.

3- Another advantage is its portability. If a company moves

to a new location, the wireless system is much easier to move
than ripping up all of the cables that a wired system would
have snaked throughout the building.
Most of these advantages also translate into monetary savings.
Advantages of Wireless Networks Wireless LANs can use either radio frequencies or infrared
light to transmit signals. While it is considerably cheaper to
Wireless LANs designed to operate in license-free bands install infrared networks, as many devices already have
making their operation and maintenance costs less than infrared (IrDA) ports (Franklin, 2010).
contemporary cellular and PCS networks. The use of license-
Portable terminals should have access to all of the services that
free spectrum, however, increases the risk of network security
are available on high-speed wired networks. Unlike their
and in-band interference. The key advantages of wireless
wired counterparts, portable devices are subject to severe
networks as opposed to wired networks are mobility,
limitations on power consumption, size and weight. The desire
flexibility, ease of installation and maintenance, and reduced
for inexpensive, high-speed links satisfying these requirements
cost. (Aziz, 2003)
has motivated recent interest in infrared wireless
communication (Gfeller & Bapst, 1979).
According to (Symantec , 2002) wireless LANs are less
expensive and less intrusive to implement and maintain, as Wireless infrared communications refers to the use of free-
user needs change. space propagation of light waves in the near infrared band as a
Simple implementation and maintenance, extended reach,, transmission medium for communication (Carruthers, 2002).
increased worker mobility and reduce total cost of ownership
and operation. The Infrared Data Association (IrDA) is another trade
association, which defined standards for infrared
communication for many years. It has some advantages;
Emerging Developments notably that it is cheap and there are many devices which
already include infrared including most laptops and PDAs as
Fundamental step forward in information theory, which first
well as some printers. Before the advent of radio frequency
emerged during the time of the early development of wireless
LANs people were building infrared LANs, with some
LANs, have now reached a level of maturity and acceptance
success. (irda.org, 2011)
that is allowing them to drive the quest for higher spectral
efficiencies and data rates. The wavelength band between about 780 and 950 nm is
presently the best choice for most applications of infrared
Another important development in wireless LAN technology wireless links, due to the availability of low-cost LED’s and
is the emergence of mesh networking. Mesh networks have the laser diodes (LD’s), and because it coincides with the peak
potential to dramatically increase the area served by a wireless responsively of inexpensive, low-capacitance silicon
network. Mesh networks even have the potential, with photodiodes (Rancourt,, 1993).
sufficiently intelligent routing algorithms to boost overall
spectral efficiencies attained by selecting multiple hops over It provide a useful complement to radio-based systems,
high capacity links rather than single hops over low capacity particularly for systems requiring low cost, light weight,
links (Holt, 2005). moderate data rates, and only requiring short ranges
(Carruthers, 2002).
5-Wireless LAN Technologies However, this radiation cause problem relates to eye safety; it
When making a decision about the best protocol or standard to can pass through the human cornea and focused by the lens
use. We need to consider its features and our needs. Weight onto the retina, where it can potentially induce thermal
the features and compare the advantages and disadvantages of damage (Kahn & Barry, 1997).
each one to make the final decision.
To achieve eye safety with an LD user can employ a thin plate
There are several wireless LAN solutions available today, with of translucent plastic. such diffusers can achieve efficiencies
varying levels of standardization and interoperability. of about 70%, offering the designer little freedom to tailor the
Many solutions that currently lead the industry, IrDa, source radiation pattern. Computer generated holograms
Bluetooth, HomeRF and IEEE 802.11. These technologies (Smyth et al, 1995).
enjoy wider industry support and targeted to solve Enterprise,
The primary goals in extending IrDA-Data’s connection
Home and public wireless LAN needs.
model were: (Williams, 1999)
• To enable devices to view each other to establish
• Infrared (IrDa) communication relationships uninhibited by the
connection state of nearby devices.
The appearance of portable information terminals in work and
living environments is increase the introduction of wireless • To enable an AIR device to establish communications
digital links and local area networks(LAN’s). with at most one IrDA 1.x device.
 • For AIR devices to respect established connections Access Protocol-Cordless Access (SWAP-CA)
with which they could interfere. This is a co- specification (Goldsmith, 2004).
existence requirement intended to ensure that AIR
devices do not disrupt active connections Unlike Wi-Fi, HomeRF already has quality-of-
service support for streaming media and is the only
• Bluetooth
wireless LAN to integrate voice. HomeRF may
Bluetooth is an industry specification for short-range become the worldwide standard for cordless phones.
connectivity for portable personal devices with its functional In the year 2001, the Working group unveiled
specification released out in 1999 by Bluetooth Special HomeRF 2.0 that supports 10 Mbps (HomeRF 2.0) or
Interest Group. more. (Chandramouli, 2005)
Bluetooth communicates on a frequency of 2.45 gigahertz,
which has been set aside by international agreement for the A network topology of the Home RF protocol
use of industrial, scientific and medical devices (ISM) consists of four types of nodes: Control Point, Voice
(Chandramouli, 2005). It is a worldwide license free band that Terminals, Data Nodes, and Voice and Data Nodes.
any system can use (Goldsmith, 2004). The control point is the gateway to the public
switched telephone network (PSTN) and the Internet.
Using this band allows the Bluetooth protocol to become a It is also responsible for power management of the
standard around the world for interfacing devices together network. A voice terminal communicates with the
wirelessly. control point via voice only. A data node
Communications protocol developed to allow the devices communicates with the control point and other data
using Bluetooth to transfer data reliably over their wireless nodes. Finally, a voice and data node is a
network. combination of the previous two nodes (Lansford,
2000).
Bluetooth has a range of less than 10 meters. The range is
increased when a scatternet is used because each unit only has
• IEEE 802.11
The vendors joined together in 1991, first proposing,
to be within 10 meters of one other unit. The range can also be
and then building, a standard based on contributed
increased if the data is transmitted in a high power mode
technologies. In June 1997, the IEEE released the
which offers transmissions up to 100 meters. Bluetooth also
802.11 standard for wireless local-area networking
offers a cipher algorithm for security. This is most useful in
(Cisco Wireless Lan standard report, 2000).
the high power mode because when data is being transmitted
further there is a greater possibility of an unwanted device
This initial standard specifies a 2.4 GHz operating
receiving the network’s data (Goldsmith, 2004).
frequency with data rates of 1 and 2 Mbps. With this
standard, one could choose to use either frequency
• HomeRF hopping or direct sequence. Because of relatively low
In early 1997, several companies formed the Home data rates as, products based on the initial standard
RF working group to begin the development of a did not flourish as many had hoped (Chandramouli,
standard designed specifically for wireless voice and 2005).
data networking in the home. (Goldsmith, 2004).
HomeRF is an open industry specification developed In late 1999, the IEEE published two supplements to
by Home Radio Frequency Working Group (Wireless the initial 802.11 standard: 802.11a and 802.11b (Wi-
Networking Choices for the Broadband Internet Fi). The 802.11a (Highly Scalable Wireless LAN
Home., 2001) that defines how electronic devices Standard , 2002), standard (High Speed Physical
such as PCs, cordless phones and other peripherals Layer in the 5 GHz Band) specifies operation in the 5
share and communicate voice, data and streaming GHz band with data rates up to 54 Mb/s (O’Hara, B.
media in and around the home. and Petrick, 1999).

The development of this working group was The 802.11 WLAN standard allows for transmission
motivated by the widespread use of the internet and over different media. Compliant media include
the development of affordable PCs that can be used in infrared light and two types of radio transmission
most homes. This protocol allows PCs in the home to within the unlicensed 2.4-GHz frequency band:
have greater mobility, providing a connection to the frequency hopping spread spectrum (FHSS) and
Internet, printers, and other devices anywhere in the direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS).
home. With all this potential, many members of Spread spectrum is a modulation technique developed
industry worked to develop the Shared Wireless in the 1940s that spreads a transmission signal over a
broad band of radio frequencies.
 Several studies talk about protocols and its access points. The default configuration of these devices offer
characteristics, all the protocols developed for their little security and can be easily misconfigured. Intruders can
own specific needs and they are capable of filling use any insecure wireless station as a launch pad to break in
these needs well. the network.
We will mention some of them briefly in a table
according to (Goldsmith, 2004) study. The basis for all WLAN security should start by understanding
the environment in which your WLAN operates and its
benifits.

We think about mobility and productivity as benefits of

wireless, but that benefits put your information at risk.

We should pay attention on security alerts and set up a secure

WLANs by implementing some practical actions.

(Khatod, 2004) implement five steps to protect the information

assets, identify vulnerabilities and protect the network from
wireless-specific attacks.

1. Discovery and improvement of Unauthorized

WLANs and Vulnerabilities.
it represent one of the biggest threats to enterprise
network security by creating an open entry point to
the enterprise network that bypasses all existing
security measures including access points, soft
access points (laptops acting as access points), user
stations, wireless bar code scanners and printers.

According to wireless security experts, discovery

of unauthorized access points, stations and
vulnerabilities is best accomplished with full
monitoring of the WLAN.

2. Lock Down All Access Points and Devices

The next step of WLAN security involves
perimeter control for the WLAN. Each wireless
equipped laptop should be secured by deploying a
personal agent that can alert the enterprise and user
of all security vulnerabilities and enforce
conformance to enterprise policies. Organizations
should deploy enterprise-class access points that
offer advanced security and management
Wireless security has become just as important as the capabilities.
technology itself. This issue known in the media with much
press on how easy it is to gain unauthorized access to a
wireless network. It seems as if this attention has fallen on 3. Encryption and Authentication
deaf ears as these networks are still incredibly in danger. Encryption and authentication provide the core of
The absence of a physical connection between nodes makes security for WLANs. However ,fail-proo
the wireless links vulnerable to spy and information theft. encryption and authentication standards have yet to
be implemented.
Insecure wireless user stations such as laptops create an even
greater risk to the security of the enterprise network than rogue
 4. Set and Enforce WLAN Policies Two wireless clients can talk directly to each other, bypassing
WLANs needs a policy for usage and security. the access point. Users therefore need to defend clients not just
While policies will vary based on individual against an external threat but also against each other.
security and management requirements of each
WLAN, a thorough policy and enforcement of the
5- Brute Force Attacks Against Access Point Passwords
policy can protect an enterprise from unnecessary Most access points use a single key or password that is shared
security breaches and performance degradation. with all connecting wireless clients. Brute force dictionary
attacks attempt to compromise this key by methodically
5. Intrusion Detection and Protection testing every possible password. The intruder gains access to
Security mangers rely on intrusion detection and the access point once the password is guessed.
protection to ensure that all components of
WLANs are secure and protected from wireless 6- Attacks against Encryption
threats and attacks. 802.11b standard uses an encryption system called WEP
(Wired Equivalent Privacy). WEP has known weaknesses (see
To avoid the risks we should know it first, understanding how http://www.isaac.cs.berkeley.edu/isaac/wep-faq.html for more
they work and using this information to avoid them as a information), and these issues are not slated to be addressed
solution for WLANs security. before 2002. Not many tools are readily available for
A report from Internet Security Systems incorporation discuss exploiting this issue, but sophisticated attackers can certainly
some risks attacks against wireless technologies, they fall into build their own.
seven basic categories:
1. Insertion attacks 7- Misconfiguration
2. Interception and unauthorized monitoring of wireless Many access points ship in an unsecured configuration in
traffic order to emphasize ease of use and rapid deployment. Unless
3. Jamming administrators understand wireless security risks and properly
4. Client-to-Client attacks configure each unit prior to deployment, these access points
5. Brute force attacks against access point passwords will remain at a high risk for attack or misuse.
6. Encryption attacks
7. Misconfigurations Another report about Securing Wireless Local Area Networks
suggests recommendations to protect wireless LAN network
1- Insertion Attacks from attack, the following are some of them:
Insertion attacks are based on deploying unauthorized devices
or creating new wireless networks without going through 1. Educate employees about WLAN risks, and how to
security process and review (Bidgoli, 2006). recognize an intrusion or suspicious behavior.
2. restrict unauthorized attachment of wireless access
points (rogue access points).
2- Interception and Monitoring of Wireless Traffic 3. Employ a third party managed security services
As in wired networks, it is possible to intercept and monitor company to constantly monitor the network security
network traffic across a wireless LAN. infrastructure for signs of an attack or unauthorized
The attacker needs to be within range of an access point use.
(approximately 300 feet for 802.11b) for this attack to work, 4. Deploy strong for all of IT resources.
The advantage for a wireless interception is that a wired attack 5. Ask users to connect only to known access points;
requires the placement of a monitoring agent on a masquerading access points are more likely in
compromised system. All a wireless intruder needs is access to unregulated public spaces.
the network data stream. 6. Deploy personal firewalls, anti-virus software and
spyware blockers on all corporate PCs, particularly
laptops and computers using the Windows operating
3- Jamming system.
jamming can be a massive problem for WLANs. It is one of 7. Actively and regularly scan for rogue access points
many exploits used compromise the wireless environment. It and vulnerabilities on the corporate network, using
works by denying service to authorized users as legitimate available WLAN management tools.
traffic is jammed by the overwhelming frequencies of
illegitimate traffic. 8. Change default management passwords and, where
possible, administrator account names, on WLAN
access points.
4- Client-to-Client Attacks
 9. Use strong security for other data resources such as We know that hackers will never go away, so we bear the
laptop or desktop data files and e-mail messages and burden to provide the best ‘locks’ we can to protect our
attachments. WLANs. Finally, whatever the outcome, wireless LANs will
survive and are here to stay even if the technology has a new
10. Avoid placing access points against exterior walls or look and, or feel in coming years.
windows.

11. Reduce the broadcast strength of WLAN access

points, when possible, to keep it within the necessary
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