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Understanding IEEE 802.11(Wi-Fi) Encryption and Authentication: Write Your Own Custom Packet Sniffer
- IEEE 802.11 standards include WEP, WPA, WPA2, and WPA3 for Wi-Fi security, with various encryption and authentication methods.
- WEP uses a static key for encryption, making it vulnerable. WPA improved security by using Temporal Key Integrity Protocol (TKIP).
- WPA2 utilizes AES for encryption, offering stronger protection than WPA. WPA3 enhances security with AES-128/192 and SAE for authentication.
- Different authentication methods like PSK and EAP are supported for personal and enterprise networks under WPA, WPA2, and WPA3.
- IEEE 802.11 MAC frame header structure includes Frame Control, Address fields, and Frame Body containing Information Elements.
- Management frames like Beacon, Authentication, Association, Probe, and others are used for establishing and maintaining wireless network connections.
- Information Elements (IEs) in Beacon frames convey network data like SSID, supported rates, encryption, and authentication details.
- A custom packet sniffer written in C using libpcap can capture Wi-Fi management frames like Beacon and extract RSN Information Elements.
- Wireshark, a popular packet sniffing tool, allows inspection of Wi-Fi frames to identify encryption and authentication methods used by nearby networks.
- By analyzing the RSN IE in Beacon frames, one can determine the encryption (cipher suite) and authentication (AKM suite) settings of the network.
- Understanding IEEE 802.11 security standards, MAC frame structure, Wi-Fi frame types, and packet sniffing techniques provides insights into securing wireless networks.
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