WIRELESS COMMUNICATION INFRASTRUCTURE VULNERABILITIES
Most of the existing vulnerabilities in the wireless networks are caused by the medium.
Because transmissions are broadcast, they are easily available to anyone who can listen to them.
WLAN Vulnerabilities
The easy installation and use of an AP.
This vulnerability allows any individual to introduce an unauthorized wireless network in unauthorized areas. The easy installation and configuration of the AP make this feasible for legitimate or illegitimate users.
The AP configuration.
If the AP is poorly configured or unauthorized, then it can provide an open door to attackers. This is caused by using a default configuration that annihilates the security controls and encryption mechanisms that the AP is able to provide in normal use.
Physical security of an authorized AP.
most APs are deployed by default, their placement and ease of access are critical
. An AP has to be correctly placed and physically protected in order to avoid accidental damage (made, for example, by a direct access to the physical cable attaching the AP).
Signal range of an authorized AP.
This vulnerability is characterized by the possibility that the AP signal strength extends beyond a given perimeter (the perimeter of a building, for example).
Rogue AP
This vulnerability allows an attacker to place an unauthorized (or rogue) AP on the network area and configure it to look legitimate to the network users to gain access to a wireless user’s sensitive data.
Protocol weaknesses and capacity limits on authorized APs.
These vulnerabilities can cause Denial of Service attacks (DoS) from malicious users utilizing unauthorized APs when they can flood authorized AP with traffic forcing them to reboot or deny accesses.
Cellular System Vulnerabilities
Service interruption vulnerabilities:
Handset vulnerabilities:
Radio link protection-only vulnerability:
Unlike computer systems, handsets are limited regarding the security features. The implementation of security mechanisms can present some weaknesses allowing attackers to launch successful attacks.
The increased capacity offered by the high-speed communication technologies has resulted in the reduction of cable routes necessary to meet traffic capacity requirements
e wireless messages travel through the air, between the handset and the access node, for transmission to the receiver, messages may need to be changed to another protocol.
Such change can be done at a gateway, for example, to allow a wireless transport layer security (WTLS) message to be changed to a secure socket layer (SSL) message.