Why It's So Important?
Security Above All
Many companies, especially small businesses, currently have a WiFi network of variable quality that still meets their basic needs. Users simply adapt to the circumstances; if there are WiFi issues, they look for an available Ethernet connection or change location.
On the other hand, no company, regardless of size, should tolerate a serious security vulnerability. This is exactly the problem that the WiFi 5 standard and previous versions face: the associated security algorithms, known as WPA and WPA2, are affected by various design flaws, allowing hackers to obtain the encryption keys used to encrypt communication on the WiFi network. Regarding WPA2, the most widely used security standard, the most infamous vulnerability is known as KRACK(1), and since it is a design issue, it can be mitigated but not fully resolved(2)! It is not easy to exploit, but there are semi-automated tools(3) available that significantly facilitate the work of criminals. Less experienced hackers target small businesses with shared passwords ("preshared key"), retrieve these keys, and can connect to the affected company's network or intercept communication at will.
Professional hackers target large companies using WiFi authentication "per user" (WPA2 Enterprise) and can, for example:
- Intercept communication from a specific user
- Launch a denial-of-service attack on the WiFi network
WiFi 6 introduces the new security standard called WPA3(4), which corrects the design flaws of previous versions. For small businesses, which may struggle to implement measures to mitigate the impact of KRACK (patches for smartphones, tablets, and laptops, transitioning to WPA2 Enterprise, etc.), upgrading to WiFi 6 allows them to return to a high level of security without increasing the complexity of network management. For large companies, which are targets of professional hackers with significant operational resources, WPA3 should be considered an essential component.