beginner wireless security

Hi all.

I purchased the bare basics.
Dell inspirion Laptop XP sp2 with wireless card
belkin 54 mps wireless router and yahoo DSL.

When I connect (no problems by the way, even for a newbie like me)
I get great signal strength.

I need now to understand what I should do about security.
My new laptop comes with Norton Internet security
and XP has a firewall. Then the belkin has basic security features.

When I connect, it always says I'm connected to and unsecured network.

What do I need to do first?

Thanks,
jojo

When I connect, it always says I'm connected to and unsecured network.

This means your wireless connection is unsecure. Depending on what your
belkin supports you can use WEP or WPA-PSK. The latter being the most secure
Your Docs should show you how to set it up. Once you enable it on the router
your card will no longer be able to talk to it until you configure the card.


"jojo" <cgv_2000*yourhat*@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:vrMjd.11511$(E-Mail Removed) om...
> Hi all.
>
> I purchased the bare basics.
> Dell inspirion Laptop XP sp2 with wireless card
> belkin 54 mps wireless router and yahoo DSL.
>
> When I connect (no problems by the way, even for a newbie like me)
> I get great signal strength.
>
> I need now to understand what I should do about security.
> My new laptop comes with Norton Internet security
> and XP has a firewall. Then the belkin has basic security features.
>
> When I connect, it always says I'm connected to and unsecured network.
>
> What do I need to do first?
>
> Thanks,
> jojo
>
>

jojo wrote:
> Hi all.
>
> I purchased the bare basics.
> Dell inspirion Laptop XP sp2 with wireless card
> belkin 54 mps wireless router and yahoo DSL.
>
> When I connect (no problems by the way, even for a newbie like me)
> I get great signal strength.
>
> I need now to understand what I should do about security.
> My new laptop comes with Norton Internet security
> and XP has a firewall. Then the belkin has basic security features.
>
> When I connect, it always says I'm connected to and unsecured network.
>
> What do I need to do first?
>
> Thanks,
> jojo
>
>
1. change the admin userid/password for the router.
2. disable ssid broadcast, so nobody can see your access point.
3. enable WEP (or preferably WPA if your AP supports it).
4. enable MAC address filtering so that only authorised wifi adapters
can connect to the AP.
5. enable your firewall.
6. make sure your anti virus is kept up to date.
7. surf safely - don't download and install dodgy software - never open
email attachments unless you are absolutely sure they are safe.


This is about as much as you can do with the equipment you have - should
be strong enough to deter all but the most persistent (and
knowledgeable) intruders.

Hope this helps
Peter Phillips
Software Director
Kinetiq Airzone

SandyBaby wrote:

> 1. change the admin userid/password for the router.

That an important but often forgetten point.

> 2. disable ssid broadcast, so nobody can see your access point.

Well that won't help. Hiding the SSID can give you a lot of troubles but it
does not really increase security. The SSID is broadcasted on every logon
so it can be found out by everybody. The positon of your WLAN can be found
anyway, with or without broadcasted SSID.

> 3. enable WEP (or preferably WPA if your AP supports it).

You may see the manual to do so.
Check if all your components support WPA. If they do use "WPA-PSK" and enter
a long and random secret key.

> 4. enable MAC address filtering so that only authorised wifi adapters
> can connect to the AP.

That's even more useless then the hidden SSID. The MAC address is sent with
every packet (even the encrypted) and it's very simple to fake it.

> 5. enable your firewall.
> 6. make sure your anti virus is kept up to date.
> 7. surf safely - don't download and install dodgy software - never open
> email attachments unless you are absolutely sure they are safe.

That are no special WLAN security hints but also very important.
I just have to add that you have to read carefull what the firewall tool is
asking. Never click 'OK' or 'Allow' without knowing what it means.
But even without firewall you are pretty save. An attacker from the internet
can see the router only.

And last but not least:
8. NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, use the Internet Explorer!
Nearly every dialer, trojan horse or virus infecting your system from an
internet page is doing so by using Internet Explorer scriping features
(including several security problems). On other browser like Mozilla or
Opera they just won't work.

Thomas

> 1. change the admin userid/password for the router.
> 2. disable ssid broadcast, so nobody can see your access point.

I'm not sure I understand the difference between a router and and access
point.

> 3. enable WEP (or preferably WPA if your AP supports it).
> 4. enable MAC address filtering so that only authorised wifi adapters
> can connect to the AP.
> 5. enable your firewall.

That would be norton firewall or windows firewall?

> 6. make sure your anti virus is kept up to date.
> 7. surf safely - don't download and install dodgy software - never open
> email attachments unless you are absolutely sure they are safe.
>
>
> This is about as much as you can do with the equipment you have - should
> be strong enough to deter all but the most persistent (and
> knowledgeable) intruders.

Thanks for your help!!!
jojo


>
> Hope this helps
> Peter Phillips
> Software Director
> Kinetiq Airzone

"Airhead" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:418f95a8$0$799$(E-Mail Removed). ..
> When I connect, it always says I'm connected to and unsecured network.
>
> This means your wireless connection is unsecure. Depending on what your
> belkin supports you can use WEP or WPA-PSK. The latter being the most
secure
> Your Docs should show you how to set it up. Once you enable it on the
router
> your card will no longer be able to talk to it until you configure the
card.


Thanks! I'll set that WEP up.

jojo

jojo wrote:

>
>> 1. change the admin userid/password for the router.
>> 2. disable ssid broadcast, so nobody can see your access point.
>
> I'm not sure I understand the difference between a router and and
> access
> point.

A DSL router is a device connecting one or more computers to the internet
over a DSL line.
An Access Point is the base station for a wireless network.
DSL WLAN router are a router and an Access Point in one device.

>> 3. enable WEP (or preferably WPA if your AP supports it).
>> 4. enable MAC address filtering so that only authorised wifi adapters
>> can connect to the AP.
>> 5. enable your firewall.
>
> That would be norton firewall or windows firewall?

That are two possibilies. But it can also be any other personal firewall
product.

Thomas

>
> And last but not least:
> 8. NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, use the Internet Explorer!
> Nearly every dialer, trojan horse or virus infecting your system from
an
> internet page is doing so by using Internet Explorer scriping features
> (including several security problems). On other browser like Mozilla or
> Opera they just won't work.
>
> Thomas

Really...I should use Mozilla or Opera? I have never heard of either.
I have been using IE for years and years. Does everyone here concurr?

Thanks,
jojo

Taking a moment's reflection, jojo mused:
|
| Really...I should use Mozilla or Opera? I have never heard of either.
| I have been using IE for years and years. Does everyone here concurr?

If your browsing habits are safe, then IE will be fine. Certainly,
there are other browsers that are more secure, but if IE were the insecure
mess some believe you'd be hearing about how people have been hacked with it
every day. But, more often than not, you hear about the vulnerabilities ...
but very few actual accounts of it being exploited.

On Mon, 08 Nov 2004 17:59:24 +0100, Thomas Krüger
<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

<snip>

>>> 5. enable your firewall.
>>
>> That would be norton firewall or windows firewall?
>
>That are two possibilies. But it can also be any other personal firewall
>product.

Thomas

What's the answer to JoJo's question? Should either or neither Norton
or Window's firewall be enabled with a router in place?

--
Peter Langley