ABSTRACT
Provisions of open-access Wi-Fi networks for public access have unique attributes and corresponding limitations, which distinguish them from more common enterprise networks. Not least of these is their vulnerability to malicious use and attack. This chapter investigates how these different characteristics impact on the challenge of securing Wi-Fi networks and users from attacks by describing an independent monitoring system (IMS), tailored specifically to the needs of Open Access Wi-Fi infrastructures. Benefits and challenges regarding the collection of live network traffic are demonstrated through the deployment of this IMS in multiple live network environments. Analysis of the traffic collected shows that live Wi-Fi traffic is statistically distinct, depending on time, placement, and location. The results indicate that selection of windowing values for frame reception in these networks can have a knock-on effect on threshold-based flood detection algorithms in these networks.
