The
preface states that this book is aimed at the network
engineer,
and the security engineer, or the hobbyist, but it is
not an
introductory work. The reader will need to know Linux
to the kernel
configuration level, and TCP/IP networking to the ARP
(Address
Resolution Protocol) level.
Part
one addresses the basics of 802.11 security. Chapter
one
provides a background, and looks at issues, in wireless
communications, although primarily from a communications,
rather than
security, perspective. There is a review of attacks and
risks, in
chapter two, and for once there is a comparison of wired
versus
wireless hazards, ranging from the common (interference
from portable
phones) to the sophisticated (signal strength attacks
related to
diversity antennae).
Part
two deals with station, or remote device, security.
Chapter
three examines attacks against machines and networks,
and suggests the
use of SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) and SSH (Secure SHell).
Configuration recommendations for the kernel, startup,
firewall, and
other aspects of FreeBSD are covered in chapter four.
Chapters five,
six, and seven do the same for Linux, OpenBSD, and Mac
OS X,
respectively (with a concentration on the AirPort utilities
for the
Mac). Windows, in chapter eight, reviews basic workstation
items
only, with limited advice and direction.
Part
three looks at access port security, and the setup
of access
points under Linux, FreeBSD, and OpenBSD are all contained
in chapter
nine.
Gateway
security is the topic of part four, with chapter ten
looking
at gateways and firewalls, while the use of the three
UNIX variants as
gateways is discussed in chapters eleven, twelve, and
thirteen.
Authentication and encryption, mostly with IPSec, is
reviewed in
chapter fourteen. A rather vague closing is given in
fifteen.
As
noted, this is not a book for beginners. Presumably
readers should
already know the most common dangers of wireless LANs,
such as
allowing default access passwords to remain active, and
broadcasting
the station set identifier. WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy)
is
dismissed as irrelevant: since it is deeply flawed, one
can assume
that the concentration on technologies such as IPSec
and station
security is of greater use than suggesting minor improvements
in the
use of WEP keys and initialization vectors. However,
it is a bit of a
pity that the authors took this route. With the addition
of possibly
an extra fifty pages this could have been an excellent
reference for
all wireless LAN administrators.
copyright Robert M. Slade, 2003 BK8021SC.RVW 20030404
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