Survey of the security risks of Wi-Fi networks based on the information elements of beacon and probe response frames

Abstract

Wi-Fi networks have become prevalent in homes, businesses, and public places. Wi-Fi is one of the most common means that people use to access digital services like Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, email, and even payment platforms. Equipment for deploying Wi-Fi networks is affordable and its basic features are easy to manipulate. In many cases Wi-Fi users do not even have to buy any communication equipment, since Wi-Fi routers are installed by internet service providers (ISP) in the premises of their customers. Wi-Fi equipment, owned either by end users or ISP companies, should be configured as securely as possible to avoid potential attacks. The security capabilities and features of Wi-Fi routers and access points are inserted into beacon and probe response frames. Potential attackers can use sniffing tools like Wireshark to capture these frames and extract information about security features to discover vulnerabilities.  In order to assess the security risks of Wi-Fi networks we conducted a survey in which we used Wireshark to capture the traffic from several Wi-Fi networks, and then through a filter we selected the beacon and probe response frames to analyze the security information elements carried by those frames. We came to the conclusion that despite technical recommendations, some security parameters and options are still set in a way that makes networks more prone to attacks. With this paper we want the readers to be aware of the security risks of their Wi-Fi networks, even the ones set up by their internet service providers.