Explanation of Terms
Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP)
WEP is a commonly and widely used network security method. To enable WEP, you need to set up a network security key. This key encrypts the information that one computer sends to another computer across your network. The receiving computer needs the key to decode the information making it difficult for someone on another computer or to get onto your network and access files without your permission.
Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA)
WPA helps to authenticate the security of WEP. WPA encrypts information, it also checks to make sure that the network security key has not been modified. WPA also authenticates users to help ensure that only authorized people can access the network. If your networking hardware works with both WEP and WPA security, WPA is highly recommended.
There are two types of WPA authentication: WPA and WPA2.
WPA is designed to work with all wireless network adapters, but it might not work with older routers or access points.
WPA2 is more secure than WPA, but it will not work with some older network adapters. It also uses PSK and advanced Encryption Standard (AES) to encrypt data transmissions.
Since AES is a newer and more advanced encryption scheme, it is a recommended choice for small office and home networks.
WPA functions properly with an 802.1X authentication server, which distributes different keys to each user. This is referred to as WPA-Enterprise or WPA2-Enterprise.
802.1X authentication
802.1X authentication can help enhance security for 802.11 wireless networks and wired Ethernet networks. 802.1X uses an authentication server to validate users and provide network access. On wireless networks, 802.1X can work with Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) or Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) keys. This type of authentication is typically used when connecting to a workplace network.
