A critical security vulnerability was just announced, affecting the security and integrity of WiFi networks. A weakness affecting WPA2 has just been discovered and publicly disclosed. When vulnerabilities receive a lot of press and attention, they get assigned a name. In this case, it’s been named, the “KRACK” attack. Due to the increased press attention, these kinds of vulnerabilities soon become the latest favorite weapon of criminals & hackers. We can soon expect to see networks and systems getting breached, as the tools become widespread and easy to use. ACT NOW with a high degree of urgency and remediate your network ASAP! This same pattern occurred in recent headline security breaches, a vulnerability was discovered, a patch or fix was released shortly thereafter, and within a few short months, we saw companies who ignored this advice fall victim. Notable examples include Equifax, the recent WannaCry, and other global ransomware outbreaks. Don’t be the next victim, act now, and please contact Netrix for support and remediation assistance if needed.
The vulnerability highlighted affects a very large percentage of WiFi networks in use today. A significant percentage of Wireless Access Points (APs) have implemented WPA2, as this was the accepted, and secure standard configuration. Over time, new vulnerabilities emerge, forcing the industry to evolve newer, more security solutions. It becomes a game of cat and mouse as the security technologies try and outpace new vulnerabilities and exploits and stay one step ahead of the bad guys who would use these against us. Read the vulnerability disclosure.
The KRACK vulnerability allows for malicious users within range of your corporate WiFi network using WPA2 security, to access encrypted data. This vulnerability can also be used to steal sensitive information, and potentially allow for injection and manipulation of network traffic. What is the business impact on your organization if the wireless network is compromised? What sensitive information is at risk of exposure? Is your wireless network used for anything sensitive, such as PCI, PHI, PII, or other protected or confidential information? If an adversary breached your wireless network and gained access to internal networks and systems, would you be able to stop it, detect it, and do you have an incident response team and plan in place if so?
Short term: Netrix recommends that you assess your wireless networks, and determine if you have WPA2 in use or other methods to secure your wireless network in place. In order to protect your networks, it is suggested that you update your AP software as soon as a patch is available. To help identify when a patch is available, this article is actively updated to include information about patched software for various vendors.
Long term: Fixing access points and WPA2 issues is only one part of the solution to the latest KRACK attack. Netrix recommends strategic security solutions that help address the other countermeasures needed to run a se cure environment, including:
Netrix can help implement solutions to the KRACK vulnerability, call us for help securing your network!
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