WEP security gets busted yet again

It's no secret that WEP isn't quite the cat's pajamas anymore when it comes to WiFi security, but the aging protocol is still used in a good many networks -- 59% in a recent survey of a large German city -- and has just been hacked beyond repair by a few security analysts. Back in 2001 when WEP was originally hacked, it took around 4 million packets of data to crack a security key. Later hacks have managed to use significantly less packets and hack a system in minutes. However, a recent development by the folks at Darmstadt University of Technology in Germany have managed to extract a 104-bit WEP key in three seconds, using a 1.7GHz Pentium M processor. It takes under a minute to collect the necessary 40,000 - 85,000 packets of data, and the hack could potentially be carried out by a strolling cellphone or PDA user. The obvious move is to switch your network to WPA, but if you've got old school hardware holding you back, there are a few security programs that can foil the attack on WEP -- for now.

[Ayle @ Apr 4th 2007 4:44PM]

I loved that movie(I'm still waiting for that 3d virtual data interface)..... The funny thing is that all the Verizon FiOS router use the wep by default.....

[Meltz; @ Apr 4th 2007 4:45PM]

that is one amazing movie!!!

[Eric @ Apr 4th 2007 4:47PM]

Greatest movie ever. I have the DVD.

[auger282 @ Apr 4th 2007 4:55PM]

good thing no one uses 104bit wep codes....

[MasterCKO @ Apr 4th 2007 4:49PM]

stupid Nintendo DS not working with WPA...only with crap-tacular WEP...*grumble grumble*

[seth @ Apr 4th 2007 5:02PM]

Damn it! Why does Angelina Jolie need to be screwing around with my WEP!!! Bah!

[Ben @ Apr 4th 2007 5:11PM]

Old news. Using aircrack and its ability to create false packets you could do this for a while.

[shanoboy @ Apr 4th 2007 5:32PM]

@MasterCKO
My nintendo DS is the only reason I don't go to WPA or something better too.

[Pip @ Apr 4th 2007 5:33PM]

One of the best tongue in cheek computer movies ever made. I watch that crazy movie at least twice a year. Such an awesome cast.

[Crazylink @ Apr 4th 2007 5:47PM]

@shanoboy and MasterCKO
Same here, but at lest the Wii can use WPA.

[Lion @ Apr 4th 2007 5:48PM]

Wouldn't simply layering on MAC address filtering put a cork in this hole? Or is the vulnerability such that a hacker could gain access to the ARL and spoof a MAC address?

[Steve @ Apr 4th 2007 6:31PM]

WEP keys are extracted by passively capturing data packets and using weaknesses in the RC4 algorithms to deduce the WEP key. MAC address filtering is then easily overcome by repeatedly knocking an existing authorized client off of a network and analyzing its reconnection attempts to extract its MAC address. MAC filters do not prevent this type of attack and are generally regarded as insecure and more trouble to implement than beneficial.

[Chris @ Apr 4th 2007 7:11PM]

is someone gonna fill us in on what these "few security programs" are?

[Dave @ Apr 4th 2007 7:39PM]

I'm still on WEP because Nintendo is too lazy to add WPA support to the DS. The Wii gets not only WPA, but WPA2. Thanks, Nintendo!

[Unregistered @ Apr 4th 2007 9:17PM]

Hiding SSID, Mac Filtering, won't work.

See blogs.zdnet.com/Ou/?p=454&page=1

[madd_matt @ Apr 4th 2007 10:32PM]

To those spouting "old news", this new approach uses much less packets and is faster to crack than the old approach.

It could be 5-10 minutes the "old-way" on a busy network, but this method can probably do it in 1.

[OverburN @ Apr 5th 2007 1:41AM]

lol, old school technology "holding you back" , nintendo ds anyone?