Security of home
wireless networks is outpacing business, according to the 7th
annual wireless security survey from RSA, the security division of
EMC.
The report released at the
RSA
Conference Europe 2008 in London shows that home network users
appear to be more security-savvy than their corporate
counterparts.
The survey was conducted in London, Paris and New York by
independent security information professionals.
They scanned for wireless access points using a laptop computer
and identified network information using commercial software.
In London and Paris home networks are far more secure than
business networks, with very little difference in New York.
The survey found that in Paris 98% of wireless networks in homes
used some form or encryption compared with 94% in business.
In London 90% of home networks were secured compared with 80% in
business, which means 20% do not use any form of encryption.
Sam Curry, vice-president of identity and access assurance at
RSA, said all wireless access points in business should be
encrypted.
However, he said standard
Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) encryption offers very little
protection against sophisticated hackers.
"We would strongly urge wireless network administrators to
discount WEP as a viable security mechanism and upgrade to
Wi-Fi Protected Access - or stronger - without delay."
The study found that in the use of advanced encryption, New York
home networks had the biggest lead with 61% using it compared with
50% in business.
But Paris has the highest number of home networks using advanced
encryption with a 75% uptake, which is 3% higher than business
adoption in the city.
Wireless networks in London's homes are on a par with business
networks with about 48% of both using advanced encryption.
Not using advanced encryption can leave the organizations
involved vulnerable to whole classes of attacks against both access
points and wireless client computers, said Curry.
Overall, Paris showed fastest growth in wireless access points
with a 543% year-over-year increase.
The London figure grew only 72% compared with 160% in 2007 and
New York growth at 45% was 4% less than the year before.
Paris also saw the largest jump in the number of public access
points, with 300% growth outstripping New York (44%) and London
(34%).
However, London retains its position as the "most wireless city"
with a total of 12,276 access points detected - exceeding the
number we found in New York City by more than 3,000.