[CLUE-Tech] my neighbor has an access point

[Dave Hahn]

SSID broadcast allows for the windozey 'zero-conf' wireless kind of
stuff.  Essentially, you have to understand less in order to use the
system.  Of course, security is a different matter....

-d

On Sun, 2002-11-24 at 10:17, Sean LeBlanc wrote:
> On 11-24 06:53, Mike Miller wrote:
> > I can't help you on setting the affinity for your basestation, but I CAN
> > help on general WiFi security stuff:
> > 
> > IF the laptop has a compatibile chipset (I think there are, like, two
> > major flavors), and can boot into a wintel OS, head on over to
> > www.netstumbler.org and check out netstumbler. I can set the card into a
> > promiscuous mode and give you a GREAT feel for what's unprotected in
> > your area. (If you've got a GPS unit, it'll evenadd the locations that
> > the sites correspond to.)
> > 
> > On the U*ix end of things, there's Airsnort http://airsnort.shmoo.com/
> > Not having used it, I _think_ it's more used for cracking WEP
> > passphrases once you know what the target network is called. 
> > 'Recovering lost keys' in PC whitehat hackerspeak. :P
> > 
> > Make sure you're running 128 bit WEP, change the code occasionally,
> > change your SSID to something non-default, and this is the big one: Shut
> > off SSID broadcast!
> > 
> > SSID broadcast is what netstumbler uses to find you...if the basestation
> > doesn't tell the world who it is, it makes it that much harder to find
> > it. I suspect a person COULD hack the network, but they'd have to me
> > much more persistent, and you've already shown there are jucier targets
> > in the neighborhood.
> > 
> > Mike "Off to go futz with Airsnort!" Miller
> 
> Well, I (briefly)saw kismet (http://www.kismetwireless.net/) for the first
> time last week at the study group, and after the message on here about
> neighbors, I thought I'd fire up the equivalent on BSD - bsd-airtools. I ran
> dstumbler, and lo and behold, there's another SSID that I can see in certain
> parts of the house. 
> 
> I'm going to do some more "stumbling" outside the house when there isn't
> snow on the ground, and see if I can figure out where it's coming from...I'm
> guessing it's from across the street, but I'm not 100%. I also need to see
> if I can stumble through setting up IPSec. I can't see the other SSID when
> I'm standing next to my WAP, but that doesn't mean they can't see the WAP
> from where they are.
> 
> BTW: why on EARTH would WAPs be set up to broadcast the SSID by default? I didn't
> realize it could be turned off. I'm off to find out how to do that...
> 
> Cheers,
> 
> -- 
> Sean LeBlanc:seanleblanc at americanisp.net  
> http://users.americanisp.net/~seanleblanc/
> Get MLAC at: http://sourceforge.net/projects/mlac/
> I know the answer! The answer lies within the heart of all mankind! The answer 
> is twelve? I think I'm in the wrong building. 
> -Charles Schulz 
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