Wi-Fi users should not use WEP security

Three senior German security experts have warned users not to use WEP (security protocol) of Wi-Fi to protect sensitive information on the system because they can "break down" first. a new attack method.

A "demo" attack on WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) security protocol will be performed by three experts at a security conference this week in Hamburg, Germany.

For six years, mathematicians have shown that the RC4 algorithm key (the foundation of the WEP protocol) is flawed, but if you want to break this algorithm, the attacks must require the intervention of at least 4 million data packages to fully calculate the security code of WEP. However, some subsequent WEP security flaws helped shorten the distance of this algorithm code to minutes. But this time is still not enough to break into the system by WEP security keys every 5 minutes to change the password again.

The latest study by the three security experts indicates that only 3 seconds of code can be broken by WEP. This time is enough to decode the 104-bit WEP key if using the Pentium M 1.7GHz processor. Compared to previous WEP decoding methods, the new method takes less time and computer power.

These experts warn that if Wi-Fi users want to transfer data as private and sensitive as bank accounts, they need to switch to a more secure security protocol instead of WEP, such as charging. WPA encryption feature (if supported by the network).