[TheZee]

I am trying to change the security settings on my NETGEAR wireless router from WEP to WPA. Does anyone know why, after changing to WPA I am unable to access the internet ? I have attempted to use WPA security, which my NETGEAR router supports, several times. When I perform the process, I am hardwired to the router. After completing the process, I disconnect the hardwire to return to wireless to find that I am unable to access the internet. Does anyone know what gives ? Does my ISP have to support WPA as well ? Does my DSL modem have to support the technology too ? Any and all guidance given is greatly appreciated.

[ghporter]

Netgear makes a number of wireless routers-which one do you have? It makes a difference in how their configuation pages are set up and what options they have. Also, what computer are you using, and which OS version?

[TheZee]

I have the NETGEAR WGR614v5 Wireless Router and use the old Apple Airport Card in my iBook G3 running OSX 10.2.8 Jaguar. I recently found out from the AppleCare Support Team that the problem lies with the fact that Jaguar does not have WPA capability so I need to upgrade the Panther, at least. Other than that, they said that I have all the components necessary for WPA Encryption. Perhaps you might have some insight on this; I have been told that WEP Security is misleading and, actually, not secure at all. However, the AppleCare tech I recently spoke with said that WEP using 128 bit password is very secure. Any thoughts on the subject ???
Peace out . . .

[ghporter]

WEP is as secure as having a wet tissue paper padlock on your safe. It's not "insecure" in that an intruder has to work at it (just a little) to break WEP, but there are tools available online for a number of OSs that make breaking WEP almost trivial. The AppleCare guy was right in that you need Panther at least for WPA (it hadn't been thought up when Jaguar was king) but 100% wrong about WEP being secure, no matter how long the key is.

Upgrade to an OS that supports WPA. Come up with a solid passphrase for it-make it quite long (it can be up to 63 characters long) and make it complete and utter nonsense. This is critical to security because while the encryption itself is extremely strong, using a poor passphrase is a major problem-the only exploit to work against WPA breaks the passphrase itself by throwing dictionary words at it. Using ANYTHING found in a dictionary, that is any real word at all anywhere in the passphrase, is a potential weakness. There are tons of sites on the Internet that will securely generate random character strings for you, and you'll only have to enter the string once in the base station and once in the computer, so it's not a major problem to have it that complex.

[TheZee]

Thanks for the heads up on the difference between WEP & WPA. Based on your interpretation of the strength of each I am choosing WPA all the way. Call me a paranoid if you want to but I believe that it is foolish for one to underestimate the lengths that others will go to to mess with personal & private information. Your assessment of the situation has been most helpful my Mac Brother. Peace out . . .

[ghporter]

"Just because you're (or we're) paranoid doesn't mean they aren't out to get you (us)!" A strong lock is better than good intentions and a stellar karma rating.