Wireless Network Communications Architecture for Swarms of Small UAVs

Wireless networks have a number of security issues. Signal leakage means that network communications can be picked up outside the physical boundaries of the building in which they are being operated, meaning a hacker can operate from the street outside or discretely from blocks away. In addition to signal leakage, the wired equivalent privacy protocol is inherently weak, and in addition to WEP’s weaknesses, there are various other attacks that can be initiated against WLANs, all with detrimental effects. On the surface WLANs act the same as their wired counterparts, transporting data between network devices. However, there is one fundamental, and quite significant, difference: WLANs are based on radio communications technology as an alternative to structured wiring and cables. Data is transmitted between devices through the air by utilizing the radio waves. Devices that participate in a WLAN must have a network interface card (NIC) with wireless capabilities. This essentially means that the card contains a small radio device that allows it to communicate with other wireless devices within the defined range for that card, for example, the 2.4-2.4853 GHz range. For a device to participate in a wireless network, it must firstly be permitted to communicate with the devices in that network, and secondly it must be within the transmission range of the devices in that network. To communicate, radio-based devices take advantage of electromagnetic waves and their ability to be altered in such a manner that they can carry information, known as modulation (Sundaralingham, 2004). Here we discuss wireless security mechanisms.

Download Full-text

Addressing WiFi Security Concerns

Business Data Communications and Networking - Advances in Distance Education Technologies ◽

10.4018/978-1-59904-274-9.ch012 ◽

2007 ◽

pp. 302-327

Author(s):

Kevin Curran ◽

Elaine Smyth

Keyword(s):

Wireless Network ◽

Small Town ◽

Security Measures ◽

Weekly Basis ◽

Home Office ◽

Home User ◽

Network Communications ◽

Security Concerns ◽

Key Length ◽

Home Users

Signal leakage means that wireless network communications can be picked up outside the physical boundaries of the building in which they are being operated, meaning a hacker can operate from the street outside. In addition to signal leakage—the wired equivalent privacy protocol is inherently weak and there are various other attacks that can be initiated against WLAN’s. This research commences by conducting a war driving expedition to ascertain the number of unprotected WLAN devices in use in a one small town. We conclude by making recommendations for three groups of user; home user, small office/home office (SOHO) and medium to large organisations. Home users should implement all the security measures their hardware offers them, to include WEP at the longest key length permitted and implement firewalls on all connected PCs changing their WEP key on a weekly basis. The small office group should implement WPA-SPK; and the medium to large organisations should implement one or more of either WPA enterprise with a RADIUS server, VPN software, IDSs, and provide documented policies in relation to WLANs and their use.

Download Full-text