DSLrgmPremium,MVM
join:2002-08-22
Oak Park, MI | reply to Sentinel
Re: Debunking the Myth of SSID Hiding said by Sentinel:
RE: #1... How do they see you anyway if you are no longer broadcasting SSID? If they are driving down the street looking for SSID's then they will not see you. If they know you are there then yes they will employ more means to get in but if they don't know you are there and are just cruising by then how do they know you are there?
Timing is everything. Someone driving by may only capture the BEACON. "There is an AP here". You can NOT turn BEACONs off. Things get REALLY broken when you do. Or there is a LOT to hard configure. But if they are near you for 1 minute and there is active traffic, they can pull out the SSID.
quote:
RE:#2... How much of a performance hit on a small home LAN of 2 or 3 PC's that are not even used at the same time often?
This is an RF issue. How often do your systems ASSOCIATE? Sometimes only at boot. Other times every few minutes.
I was just in a bank where they had an AP in the center of the building for the CFO, and it look like his complaint about every few minutes going off the wireless was an RF problem. The wireless is ONLY for this one person. There is no one else on the wireless, and it is far enough into the building that any signal outside will be weak at best.
You might have a great RF environment or a terrible one. And it can change very easily. For me it is great at my desk. OK in my NOC. Poor at the dining room table. |
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 SentinelPremium
join:2001-02-07
Florida
kudos:1 | Thanks bbarrera and DSLrgm.
So my take on it would be that IF you are experiencing no performance problems or issues then it would not hurt to turn SSID off, although it will only help against the mildest of war drivers. However if you are experiencing problems turning off SSID should be the first step. And if you are inclined to turn off SSID don't be concerned about it.
Sound good? |
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DSLrgmPremium,MVM
join:2002-08-22
Oak Park, MI | said by Sentinel:
Thanks bbarrera and DSLrgm.
So my take on it would be that IF you are experiencing no performance problems or issues then it would not hurt to turn SSID off, although it will only help against the mildest of war drivers. However if you are experiencing problems turning off SSID should be the first step. And if you are inclined to turn off SSID don't be concerned about it.
Sound good?
I think you mean 'turning *ON* SSID should be the first step'.
You have to create an SSID for your network. DO NOT USE THE DEFAULT even if you turn it 'off'. Once you do that, why take the extra time to turn it off and hand config it in all your clients????
But if the work is already done (and your SSID is not 'My Home at 1234 Main St.''), then leave it alone for now. |
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SentinelPremium
join:2001-02-07
Florida
kudos:1 | Right  I mean turning off the "disable SSID broadcast" which is turning on the SSID broadcast. (whew, say that 5 times fast)
Yes, I changed my SSID and then entered it in all my clients and then turned it off and everything works fine and it is a random bunch of characters.
About the only problem I have is when my family members come over to visit and they try to use their laptops to get online  Oh well... |
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| disabling ssid broadcast does enchanced security, but with netstumbler you can still get mac addresses....hence mac address spoofing, so like some of you have already said , turning this off is only against the inexperience wanna be hacker. |
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| i just read that "Debunking the Myth of SSID Hiding" i dont agree with it 100%, reason being im in Research & Development my self,which we have tested it, and i came to a conclusion and this is common sense if your signaling(beacon) you are saying im right here, just like a lighthouse(AP) for a boat when the captain(PC) cant see, it beacons so the captain(PC) can find it, but no matter if the captain(pc) can find it through a map(Static ip and static SSID) he is fine,if you can get this
the paper said something about performance, which i do find true in some AP, about 25% of them, linksys is the worst for it, netgear passed with flying colors, but different situations can change things like always,
not saying im right or wrong just my findings |
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| I lock my car when I go into the grocery store.
I disable SSID broadcast - when my AP is on - for the same reason |
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| Bad analogy. Turning off the SSID broadcast is more like locking the doors but leaving the windows rolled down. |
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 PetePumaHow many lumps do you wantPremium,MVM
join:2002-06-13
Arlington, VA
1 edit | reply to willyb_jr
said by willyb_jr:
I lock my car when I go into the grocery store.
I disable SSID broadcast - when my AP is on - for the same reason
Yes, but the correct parallel here is that you lock your door but leave the window down.
Ha ha-- No_Strings beat me by a few minutes! |
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| reply to No_Strings
And what - in your analogy - are the windows?
I also take every other step to secure my AP from outside access.
Are you implying that hiding the SSID is fruitless? |
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Host:
Wireless Networking
All Things Unix
Cox HSI
Efficient
Southwest Chat
| Disabling the SSID in the beacon only keeps a tool such as NetStumbler from seeing your AP. Tools like Kismet or AirSnort will see them no matter what and will capture weak keys, flag networks responding to probe requests, list the MAC address of the AP and any associating clients, show the IP range of the network and help to crack the WEP keys. Which would worry you more: a kid with NS and a Pringles can or someone equipped to get all of the available info? |
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| Honestly, they both worry me. They both can do damage - although I don't have anything the 'pro' would want, other than bandwidth...
If I can keep the kid out by hiding my SSID and taking a performance hit - so be it. We all suffer when we have to run AV, Firewalls, IDS, layered protection, etc, etc, etc. |
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| said by willyb_jr:
If I can keep the kid out by hiding my SSID and taking a performance hit - so be it. We all suffer when we have to run AV, Firewalls, IDS, layered protection, etc, etc, etc.
I think No_Strings' point is that "the kid" is just a wardriver. Wardrivers are more comparable to birdwatchers than to crackers or even hackers. |
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1 edit | Yep - I totally agree.
My analogy was meant as a portion of the "big picture" - in which we take all the necessary steps in securing our property; whether its our office, car, home, network, outside spigot - I think you know what I mean.
A criminal may have a tool to break in, but that doesn't mean I'm going to make it easier for him |
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 bbarreraPremium,MVM
join:2000-10-23
Sacramento, CA
kudos:1
 ·SureWest Internet
| said by willyb_jr:
A criminal may have a tool to break in, but that doesn't mean I'm going to make it easier for him
Criminals don't use NetStumbler, that is why hiding SSID is pointless. Disabling SSID doesn't make it harder for the criminal because they don't use NetStumbler. If you have WEP enabled then "the kid" with NetStumbler isn't likely to do anything except log your network. Provided you run APs and cards with "weak key avoidance" feature then only a brute force attack will break WEP. All the articles talking about how easy AirSnort can crack WEP would tell a completely different story if they tried AirSnort on a network running wireless gear with weak key avoidance. |
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| Disabling SSID broadcast hurts nothing, so there's no reason to not disable it. At least the pervert riding around with his pants around his ankles won't see you. |
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ShootistPremium
join:2003-02-10
Decatur, GA
kudos:3 | Has any of the posters, that say to disable/hide the SSID, read the LINK DLSrgm posted.
--
Are You Ready--Stand By BEEP ******** |
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bbarreraPremium,MVM
join:2000-10-23
Sacramento, CA
kudos:1 Reviews:
·SureWest Internet
| reply to StopandGo
Its a free world so go ahead and believe what you want. You might find this Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale a good read:
»www.deoxy.org/emperors.htm
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Host:
Wireless Networking
All Things Unix
Cox HSI
Efficient
Southwest Chat
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SSID Broadcast Disabled |
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ShootistPremium
join:2003-02-10
Decatur, GA
kudos:3 | Good 1 No_Strings |
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