How to Secure Your Wireless Home Network with Windows XP

Still a little unsure about keeping your wireless network secure in Windows XP? Just let Microsoft be your guide to a safer and more secure wireless experience.

In the early days of wireless networking, no one paid much attention to wireless security. Not many people used the technology. Because the perceived security risk was low, many people didn’t bother to configure security. At that time, Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) was the only form of encryption available. WEP, though weak and breakable, was better than no security at all. At least it kept the casual hacker away.

But with the launch of Windows XP, the operating system offered native support for configuring wireless networks. I’m convinced that this built-in feature was largely responsible for the rapid growth of wireless networking. Now wireless networking has moved outside homes and office buildings. Connectivity is everywhere from Barnes & Noble to the main terminal at your airport to free community hot zones. Wireless 802.11 a/b/g networking hardware is embedded not only in mobile computers, but can be found in many consumer electronic devices. This includes wireless security cameras, DVD players, automobile MP3 players, and Windows XP Media Center Extenders.

Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) has emerged as the improved security standard. Most wireless hardware vendors now offer network equipment that supports this newer standard. WPA comes in two flavors: WPA-Enterprise for large wireless networks and WPA-Person for small office and home wireless networks. Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) has native support for configuring WPA-Personal through a WPA-Preshared Key (PSK), also known as WPA passphrase. You can read more about WPA in my column on WPA Wireless Security for Home Networks. [Read the rest]