Ask a hundred CIOs what three things about WLANs (wireless LANs) strike fear into their hearts, and the answers are likely to be similar: Security, Security, Security. Sure, you want good coverage. Sure, you want to minimize drops. But the only way an executive is likely to lose their job over a wireless network is if they end up like the folks at The TJX Companies, who saw millions of credit card numbers stolen from an attack that started with a breach of the WLAN.

While the TJX story was an extreme case of faulty wireless encryption, questionable data protection practices, and the Russian mafia combining to create a once-in-a-blue-moon theft, the fact is that many WLANs are vulnerable to intrusion. Even if you don’t have a couple hundred million credit card numbers to protect, it’s still important to choose the correct WLAN authentication method and configure it properly. This paper will explore the authentication methods available with WPA2 (Wi-Fi Protected Access 2) and identify several important best practices to consider when deploying a wireless network at home or in the enterprise.

What Is WPA2?
To have a reasonable discussion about how you’re going to keep intruders off your WLAN, you have to establish an understanding of WPA2.