Mac Id ?'s

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Madtown HD Junkie

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Jun 3, 2004
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Madison, WI
I have a restaruant that offers free Wifi for our customers. Ofter I have cheap people park outside and try and use the Wifi. My ? is this.
HOw do I find the mac adress of my laptop?
And I can lock out Mac ID via the router right? Also is there any harm in having a wideopen network (wifi in the cafe?) Should I encrypt somehting?

ty in advance
 
Just go into your router and enable WEP security/open system and create a security key. (What make & model do you have if you do not know how to do this).

Then only people you give that WEP key to can get into your free, yet secured network. I would never leave my network unsecured.

To get your MAC ID:

Open up a CMD Prompt and type:

ipconfig/all

The physical address is your MAC ID
 
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Man, what don't you know? :p
I can get in router and turn on the WEP. Will the key be a name say "green" or anything I make it?
made the passphrase "cafe"

teh 4 keys that follow are what I give to customers? or cafe?

Linksys wireless G router is the router and DSL for service
 
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You only need to make one key (should be the first field).

I missed that this wasn't in a home/home office. Sounds like you may need some logon/registration type setup. As you give out your secret key, then anyone can pass it along.



Mine supports 2 options, a 64-bit or a 128-bit cypher in either HEX or ACSII.

YOU MAKE UP THE KEY IN THE ROUTER! MAKE IT AS RANDOM AS YOU CAN!

Use HEX and 64-bit = 10 alphas.

Every NIC will need that key to get on that router.

A 128-bit key will be a longer key (harder to remember/harder to guess) but I don't use that. YET!
 
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got the 10 key number from the router...it gives 4 four fields of keys. So when a customer comes in I just give them the key and they would enter it? right?

using 64 bit. The passphrase has nothing really to do with it?
Just the key matters?
 
Read here and below: http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-6603_7-5023845-1.html


1. Control your broadcast area. Many wireless APs (access points) let you adjust the signal strength; some even let you adjust signal direction. Begin by placing your APs as far away from exterior walls and windows as possible, then play around with signal strength so you can just barely get connections near exterior walls. This isn't enough, though. Sensitive snooping equipment can pick up wireless signals from an AP at distances of several hundred feet or more. So even with optimal AP placement, the signal may leak. Keep reading.

2. Lock each AP. A lot of people don't bother changing the defaults on their APs, and maintaining the default administrator password (like admin for Linksys products) makes your system a good target. Use a strong password to protect each AP. For tips on creating substantial passwords, go to www.pcmag.com/passwords and click on Password Dos and Don'ts

3. Ban rogue access points. If an AP is connected to your home or office network, make sure you or the network administrator put it there. Bob in Accounting isn't likely to secure his rogue AP before he connects it. Free software like NetStumbler (www.netstumbler.com) lets you sweep for unauthorized APs.

4. Use 128-bit WEP. Passively cracking the WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) security protocol is merely a nuisance to a skilled hacker using Linux freeware. Still, the protocol does at least add a layer of difficulty.

5. Use SSIDS wisely. Change the default Service Set Identifiers (SSIDs) for your APs, and don't use anything obvious like your address or company name. For corporate setups, buy APs that let you disable broadcast SSID. Intruders can use programs such as Kismet (www.kismetwireless.net) to sniff out SSIDs anyway (by observing 802.11x management frames when users associate with APs), but again, every bit of inconvenience helps.

6. Limit access rights. Chances are, not everyone in your building needs a wireless card. Once you determine who should take to the airwaves, set your APs to allow access by wireless cards with authorized MAC addresses only. Enterprising individuals can spoof MAC addresses, however, which brings us to the next tip.

7. Limit the number of user addresses. If you don't have too many users, consider limiting the maximum number of DHCP addresses the network can assign, allowing just enough to cover the users you have. Then if everyone in the group tries to connect but some can't, you know there are unauthorized log-ons.

8. Authenticate users. Install a firewall that supports VPN connectivity, and require users to log on as if they were dialing in remotely. The Linksys BEFSX41 router ($99 list) is a great choice for this. Tweak the settings to allow only the types of permissions that wireless users need.

As a side benefit, VPNs help prevent users from being fooled by malicious association attacks. In this type of assault, the perpetrator sets up a machine that pretends to be an authorized AP, in the hope that someone will be tricked into logging on. If you connect to an AP and don't get the VPN log-on prompt you expect, you know something's amiss.

9. Use RADIUS. Installing a RADIUS server provides another authentication method. The servers tend to be expensive, but there are open-source options, such as FreeRADIUS (www.freeradius.org), for UNIX-savvy administrators.

10. Call in the big boys. If you have billion-dollar secrets to protect, such as the formula to Coca-Cola, you should have wireless-dedicated hardware security in place. For instance, AirDefense (www.airdefense.net) is a server appliance that connects to sensors placed near APs. The system monitors activity and protects all traffic on your wireless LAN—but it doesn't come cheap. Prices start at $10,000 and can reach $100,000 depending on the number of sensors needed.
 
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Madtown HD Junkie said:
got the 10 key number from the router...it gives 4 four fields of keys. So when a customer comes in I just give them the key and they would enter it? right?


They would have to enter that WEP key into their NIC setup to connect; yes.

I missed the fact this was not a home setup. Read my post above please; in regards to this being a commercial establishment.

You may want to go another router ASAP where you do not have to share info with others.
 
NP, I hope your net stays secured and you find exactly what works for you. Sorry I assumed this was a home setup at first.
 
Simple method for keeping it somewhat random, just go in the router and change the key every morning. Print the key on the customer receipts from the cash register.
 
Pepper said:
Simple method for keeping it somewhat random, just go in the router and change the key every morning. Print the key on the customer receipts from the cash register.


like that idea....will try that ty. :clap
 
The idea of someone taking a free ride on your dime is distasteful. I would not like it one bit either.

The idea of throttling the power of the radio to limit the size of the hot spot sounds good. The change would be transparent to your customers, but would seriously inconvenience the parasites ... maybe even eliminate them all together.

Modifying settings however ... my impression is that this is beyond the skill level of many (perhaps most) computer users - I'm afraid you are likely to find yourself operating a help desk during the lunch rush.

Another upside to leaving the AP open - in the unlikely event your IP number ends up on a subpoena because your AP was used for unauthorized downloading, holding you responsible will be more difficult if it is not reasonable to assume the downloading was done by one of your customers.

...and, of course, your own enterprise networking should be done behind a separate router. I'm sure most of your customers are fine upstanding people, but one script kiddy with a packet sniffer and a few other toys can cause a lot of grief.

Best of luck to you.
 
You could also go the safer route and contact ATT wifi access or one of the other companies out there that sets up wifi in various business types such as yours. They are responsible for the upkeep and service and if any legal issues arise it goes to them and not you, only downfall is that most if not all are fee based and this tends to turn away the customer though only very marginaly from what I see at Borders or Barnes and Knoble.
 
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