CLICK OKTO ACCEPT THE CHANGES

14. Click OKto accept the changes.

Authentication with WEP

There are two authentication methods in the 802.11 standard:

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Open authentication

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Shared-key authenticationOpen authenticationis most precisely described as device-oriented authenti-cation and can be considered a null authentication; all requests are granted.Without WEP, open authentication leaves the WLAN wide open to any client whoknows the SSID. With WEP enabled, the WEP secret key becomes the indirectauthenticator. The shared-key authenticationprocess shown in Figure 9.6 is a four-step pro-

Head of the Class…

cess that begins when the AP receives the validated request for association. Afterthe AP receives the request, a series of management frames is transmitted betweenthe stations to produce the authentication. This includes the use of the crypto-graphic mechanisms employed by WEP as a validation. The four steps break downin the following manner: