Week 6 Assignments
Theme for the Week - Wireless Network Security
Learning Objectives:
• Characterize the services, protocols, and cryptographic algorithms that are elements of a robust wireless security network as defined by IEEE Standard 802.11i.
• Produce a design for a wireless network that provides adequate security for a business environment.
• Assess the strengths and weaknesses of current wireless standards and protocols.
• Propose a wireless security solution that addresses weaknesses in existing security protocols.
Readings:
• Chapter 6 in your textbook.
This week:
We shift our focus to secure wireless networks this week. Although wireless is a relatively new technology to local area networks, it has been around for over ten years and is considered to be mature. Wireless security has evolved over the years, and is now considered to be adequate for most business networks. However, wireless networks have built-in disadvantages that make them more prone to attack than wired networks. We'll discuss how wireless networks are currently protected, and examine the strengths and weaknesses of standards and protocols. We also examine a framework for extending security to portable network devices that use the cellular phone network to communicate.
Assignment 6_1 (On-line Quiz)
Take this ten question true/false and multiple choice chapter quiz over the reading assignment. Quizzes are a "participation grade," which means that you can retake them as many times as necessary. However, please be aware that low scores are a sign that you need to go back to the reading assignment, slow down, and read more carefully.
You need to take the quiz by the end of the week to earn credit.
Assignment 6_2 (Post to this week's discussion forum)
Post a substantive answer to one of the following questions. Please select a question that has not been previously answered by one of your classmates, until all questions have been answered at least once. Once that has been done, you may select any question that has only been answered once. Once you have submitted your initial post, read each initial post and respond to at least three. Remember to cite your sources.
1. If you were a malicious attacker, how would you attack a wireless network? Provide details of your plan of attack.
2. Given the available settings in a typical wireless access point (a Linksys WRT54G Broadband Router would be adequate if you have difficulty deciding on one to use as an example,) what is the most secure configuration you can create? You may use the Internet and other appropriate sources to answer this question. In your answer, explain the purpose, strengths, and weaknesses of each setting.
3. Our reading assignment this week is acronym soup. Do you feel that it is necessary to memorize acronyms at the graduate level? Explain your answer.
4. Why is a wired Local Area Network (LAN) inherently more secure than a Wireless LAN? Fully explain your reasoning.
5. What are some of the ways that wireless security could be improved? In your answer, provide examples of how your might implement your improvements.
6. You happen to notice that a vehicle pulls up and parks in the same spot outside of your office each night. The person remains in the vehicle and appears to be working. What could the occupant of the vehicle be doing and how would you address the problem?
7. Given WiFi Protected Access 2 (WPA2) with Temporal Key Integrity Protocol (TKIP) and Pre-Shared Keys (PSKs), how does key exchange take place, and how often are keys updated?
8. What is a nonce? Explain the use and derivation of this word and how it applies to IEEE 802.11i wireless security.
9. What is Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) and how does it apply to mobile devices? In your answer, include an explanation of WAP security features.
10. Your text states that the Wi-Fi Alliance has, "..developed certification procedures for IEEE 802.11 security standards." What does this mean to you? Hint: http://www.wi-fi.org/certification_programs.php
Our trivia question for the week: What is the name of the first worm to be released into the Internet, who released it, and what did it do?
General Posting Guidelines (for participation): Postings are counted as participation for the week. Make sure all postings for this week's assignments are posted to this week's discussion forum. You must post at least two substantive messages to get minimum credit for participation (a 'C' grade). Two messages on different days gets a 'B' for participation - more postings (including answering other questions) get more credit. To qualify for an 'A' grade, you must post at least three critical thinking messages on three different days. Postings on the last day of the lesson will not count for credit since other students will not have sufficient time to respond or participate in your discussion. Post early and often. Don't wait until the last minute!
Assignment 6_3
Put yourself in the role of a consultant. You have been hired to propose a wireless solution for a small company. The background information on the company is contained in the attachment to this assignment. Based on that information, your reading, and any other source materials at your disposal, provide a simple design for a secure wireless network. In your design, include a list of the security features that you would enable and why you would enable them. Save your deliverables in individual files named CYBR515 Assignment 6_3a and CYBR515 Assignment 6_3b , and attach them to this assignment.
Please note that they must both be attached at the same time that you submit your assignment. If you submit the assignment with only one file, you will not be able to attach the second one without help from your instructor.
Forever Young Case Study.doc
Assignment 6.4 Milestone 2
Our second set of deliverables is due this week. In this milestone, we utilize encryption to improve network security, as well as exploring improvements to the wireless network. We will be using everything that we have learned up to this point to design improvements to the network infrastructure.
Use the information from your studies and feedback from previous assignments, to help you with this process. Revise your original Visio diagram to depict any changes that you propose to make. You can either show the changes on your original Visio diagram or add your original diagram as a tab at the bottom. You also need to summarize your recommendations for change in a Microsoft Word document. You may use any appropriate sources for your requirements. Remember to cite your sources in APA format.
Attach your completed documents to this assignment. Please include CYBR515 Assignment 6_4 and your name in the file name for your diagram and summary. Remember, you only have one opportunity to attach documents, so please attach both documents at the same time.
