Dell PowerConnect W-IAP92 Dell Instant 6.1.2.3-2.0.0.0 User Guide - Page 98

Understanding WPA and WPA2, Recommended Authentication and Encryption Combinations

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Understanding WPA and WPA2 The Wi-Fi Alliance created the Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) and WPA2 certifications to describe the 802.11i standard. The standard was written to replace WEP, which was found to have numerous security flaws. It was taking longer than expected to complete the standard, so WPA was created based on a draft of 802.11i, which allowed people to move forward quickly to create more secure WLANs. WPA2 encompasses the full implementation of the 802.11i standard. Table 11 summarizes the differences between the two certifications. WPA2 is a superset that encompasses the full WPA feature set. WPA and WPA2 can be further classified as follows:  Personal-Personal is also called as Pre-Shared Key (PSK). In this type, a unique key is shared with each client in the network. Users have to use this key to securely login to the network. The key remains the same until it is changed by authorized personnel. Key change intervals can also be configured.  Enterprise-Enterprise is more secure when compared to WPA Personal. In this type, every client automatically receives a unique encryption key after securely logging on to the network. This key is long and automatically updated regularly. While WPA uses TKIP, WPA2 uses AES algorithm. Table 11 WPA and WPA2 Features Certification Authentication Encryption WPA WPA2  PSK  IEEE 802.1X with Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP)  PSK  IEEE 802.1X with EAP Temporal Key Integrity Protocol (TKIP) with message integrity check (MIC) Advanced Encryption Standard -Counter Mode with Cipher Block Chaining Message Authentication Code (AESCCMP) Recommended Authentication and Encryption Combinations Table 12 summarizes the recommendations for authentication and encryption combinations that should be used in Wi-Fi networks. Table 12 Recommended Authentication and Encryption Combinations Network Type Authentication Encryption Employee Guest Network Voice Network or Handheld devices 802.1X Captive Portal 802.1X or PSK as supported by the device AES None AES if possible, TKIP or WEP if necessary (combine with restricted policy enforcement firewall (PEF) user role). 98 | Encryption Dell PowerConnect W-Series Instant Access Point 6.1.2.3-2.0.0.0 | User Guide

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98
|
Encryption
Dell PowerConnect W-Series Instant Access Point 6.1.2.3-2.0.0.0
| User Guide
Understanding WPA and WPA2
The Wi-Fi Alliance created the Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) and WPA2 certifications to describe the 802.11i
standard. The standard was written to replace WEP, which was found to have numerous security flaws. It was
taking longer than expected to complete the standard, so WPA was created based on a draft of 802.11i, which
allowed people to move forward quickly to create more secure WLANs. WPA2 encompasses the full
implementation of the 802.11i standard.
Table 11
summarizes the differences between the two certifications.
WPA2 is a superset that encompasses the full WPA feature set. WPA and WPA2 can be further classified as
follows:
Personal—Personal is also called as Pre-Shared Key (PSK). In this type, a unique key is shared with each client
in the network. Users have to use this key to securely login to the network. The key remains the same until it is
changed by authorized personnel. Key change intervals can also be configured.
Enterprise—Enterprise is more secure when compared to WPA Personal. In this type, every client
automatically receives a unique encryption key after securely logging on to the network. This key is long and
automatically updated regularly. While WPA uses TKIP, WPA2 uses AES algorithm.
Recommended Authentication and Encryption Combinations
Table 12
summarizes the recommendations for authentication and encryption combinations that should be used
in Wi-Fi networks.
Table 11
WPA and WPA2 Features
Certification
Authentication
Encryption
WPA
PSK
IEEE 802.1X with Extensible
Authentication Protocol (EAP)
Temporal Key Integrity Protocol
(TKIP) with message integrity check
(MIC)
WPA2
PSK
IEEE 802.1X with EAP
Advanced Encryption Standard --
Counter Mode with Cipher Block
Chaining Message Authentication
Code (AESCCMP)
Table 12
Recommended Authentication and Encryption Combinations
Network Type
Authentication
Encryption
Employee
802.1X
AES
Guest Network
Captive Portal
None
Voice Network or Handheld devices
802.1X or PSK as supported by the
device
AES if possible, TKIP or WEP if
necessary (combine with restricted
policy enforcement firewall (PEF) user
role).