ZyXEL Communications ZYAIR, User Manual

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ZyAIR Wireless Gateway Series User’s Guide
Wireless Security 7-1
Chapter 7
Wireless Security
This Chapter describes how to use the MAC Filter, 802.1x, Local User Database and RADIUS to
configure wireless security on your ZyAIR.
7.1 Wireless Security Overview
Wireless security is vital to your network to protect wireless communication between wireless stations,
access points and the wired network.
The figure below shows the possible wireless security levels on your ZyAIR. The highest security level relies
on EAP (Extensible Authentication Protocol) for authentication and utilizes dynamic WEP key exchange. It
requires interaction with a RADIUS (Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service) server either on the WAN
or your LAN to provide authentication service for wireless stations.
Figure 7-1 ZyAIR Wireless Security Levels
If you do not enable any wireless security on your ZyAIR, your network is accessible to any wireless
networking device that is within range.
7.2 WEP Overview
WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) as specified in the IEEE 802.11 standard provides methods for both data
encryption and wireless station authentication.
7.2.1 Data Encryption
WEP provides a mechanism for encrypting data using encryption keys. Both the AP and the wireless stations
must use the same WEP key to encrypt and decrypt data. Your ZyAIR allows you to configure up to four 64-
bit or 128-bit WEP keys, but only one key can be enabled at any one time.