<Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article's tone or style may not reflect the encyclopedic tone used on Wikipedia . See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for suggestions . (June 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> </Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article's tone or style may not reflect the encyclopedic tone used on Wikipedia . See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for suggestions . (June 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> <P> Wireless security is the prevention of unauthorized access or damage to computers using wireless networks . The most common types of wireless security are Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) and Wi - Fi Protected Access (WPA). WEP is a notoriously weak security standard . The password it uses can often be cracked in a few minutes with a basic laptop computer and widely available software tools . WEP is an old IEEE 802.11 standard from 1999, which was outdated in 2003 by WPA, or Wi - Fi Protected Access . WPA was a quick alternative to improve security over WEP . The current standard is WPA2; some hardware cannot support WPA2 without firmware upgrade or replacement . WPA2 uses an encryption device that encrypts the network with a 256 - bit key; the longer key length improves security over WEP . Enterprises often enforce security using a certificate - based system to authenticate the connecting device, following the standard 802.1 X . </P> <P> Many laptop computers have wireless cards pre-installed . The ability to enter a network while mobile has great benefits . However, wireless networking is prone to some security issues . Hackers have found wireless networks relatively easy to break into, and even use wireless technology to hack into wired networks . As a result, it is very important that enterprises define effective wireless security policies that guard against unauthorized access to important resources . Wireless Intrusion Prevention Systems (WIPS) or Wireless Intrusion Detection Systems (WIDS) are commonly used to enforce wireless security policies . </P>

The original wireless network privacy and protection standard for wi-fi was known as
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