Sniffing, war-chalking and more: A wireless vocabulary evolves

Bob Brewin   Today’s Top Stories    or  Other Mobile and Wireless Stories  

Enhancing Business Mobility with Convertible PCs Five Ugly Truths about WAFS and Caching Sign up to receive Security Resource Alerts

September 17, 2002 (Computerworld) -- There's war-driving, war-flying, war-walking and war-jamming. "Sniffing" for 802.11b, or Wi-Fi, wireless LAN access points (AP) seems to be gaining popularity among a small niche of hobbyists, who also enjoy posting news of their exploits online.
Since wireless LAN APs broadcast in the unlicensed 2.4-GHz frequency band, they are easy to pick up by anyone who shells out less than $100 for a wireless LAN card at an electronic discounter and spends roughly the same amount on a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver and free sniffing software from the Web.
Most wireless LAN sniffers are hobbyists who like to engage in electronic scavenger hunts only in their local area. But, analysts warn, the same tools used by hobbyists are now readily available to hackers and corporate or foreign espionage agents looking to exploit unprotected networks.
The result: a new vocabulary (with its roots in a 20-year-old movie) that enterprises would do well to learn. The new terms being bandied about now include the following:
War-driving
Wireless LAN war drivers routinely cruise their immediate areas in cars equipped with laptops loaded with a wireless LAN card, an external high-gain antenna and a GPS receiver. The wireless LAN card and GPS receiver feed signals into freeware, such as NetStumbler, which detects APs and their identifiers along with their GPS-derived locations. NetStumbler also automatically detects whether or not built-in Wi-Fi Wired Equivalent Protocol (WEP) is turned on or off.
More malevolent war-drivers may use Kismet, a tool designed to crack WEP.
The term war-driving is derived from the "war-dialing" exploits of a teenage hacker in the 1983 movie WarGames who has his computer randomly dial hundreds of numbers and eventually winds up tapping into a nuclear command and control system.
As recently as May, a U.S. Defense Department agency was found to be vulnerable by a "sniffer" who found a security hole in the agency's wireless network (see story).
War-walking
Think of it as war-driving, but on foot instead of in a car. The NetStumbler Web site offers MiniStumbler software for use on Pocket PC hardware, saving war-walkers from toting around laptops. War-walkers like to use MiniStumbler and Pocket PCs to sniff shopping malls and big-box retail stores.
War-flying
Just as the name implies, it's sniffing for wireless networks from the air. The same equipment is used, but from a private plane. Just last month, a Perth, Australia war-flier picked up e-mails and Internet Relay Chat sessions from an altitude of 1,500 feet on a war-flying trip (see story).
War-spamming
Taking over a network connected to an unsecured AP and using it to inject spam into the Internet. Although there has been much speculation about wireless war-spamming in the hacker community of late, no egregious instances have yet been reported.
War-jacking or Air-jacking
Knocking out a real AP with a denial-of-service attack and then setting up a new AP that will serve as a new hub to devices that homed on the legitimate AP.
War-chalking
The systematic practice of marking and mapping nonsecured Wi-Fi 802.11b wireless APs throughout many of the nation's major metropolitan areas. The FBI this summer sent an e-mail to private-sector members of the local FBI Infragard chapter in Pittsburgh warning them of war-chalking -- the physical marking of a building or facility to denote an open wireless AP (see story).

Print this Story

Send Us Feedback

E-mail this Story

Digg this Story

Slashdot this Story

"I've loved Firefox since version 0.93. It was so much better than Internet Explorer and the other alternatives that I..." Read more... "Oh, glorious FCC! Bringer of upcoming products. Thank you for the gift we've just received......." Read more... Read more Mobile & Wireless posts or See all Blogs

Mozilla launches Firefox 3.0 RC1 early Microsoft: Don't misunderstand UAC, other Vista features HP confirms XP SP3 endless reboot snafu, promises patch More top stories...

Microsoft pulls Windows Home Server backup feature Yahoo tells Icahn that its own board knows best Tools circulate that crack Debian, Ubuntu keys

Shuttle Columbia's hard drive data recovered from crash site Specialists have retrieved about 99% of the data on a disk drive on board the crashed space shuttle Columbia. Don't miss the photographs of the recovered drive. The top 15 vaporware products of all time These big ideas were supposed to revolutionize technology, but they never actually appeared. In a few cases, you'll be glad they didn't. Opinion: Malware vs. anti-malware, 20 years into the fray Nearly 20 years after the first Internet worm, Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols takes stock of the malware/anti-malware landscape and spotlights how the two sides are approaching the battle. Leopard at six months: Does it live up to the early hype? Though some thought it was released too soon, Mac OS X 10.5 has matured into a solid operating system, says reviewer Michael DeAgonia. Windows Vista A to Z Reviews, analyses, how-tos, visual tours, hot issues and predictions about Microsoft's new OS. More Continuing Coverage After 9/11: Homeland SecurityAsk a Premier 100 IT LeaderBlackBerry Legal BattleData Security BreachesElectronic VotingFirefoxH-1B VisasHP's Boardroom ScandalHandheld DevicesHurricane Katrina AftermathMicrosoft Legal IssuesMicrosoft's VistaOpen SourceRFID TechnologySCO's Linux FightSarbanes-Oxley ActSpamVoice Over IPWi-FiWindows Meta File VulnerabilityWindows XP Service Pack 2 IT Careers 2010 Four years from now, the IT field will be a vastly different place. Will you be ready? More Special Reports Premier 100 IT Leaders 2007 Best in Class2006 Computerworld Horizon Awards2006 Premier 100 IT Leaders2006 Salary Survey2007 Best Places to Work in IT2007 IT Forecast2007 Premier 100 IT Leaders40 Years of ComputerworldASPs, Take TwoBest Places to Work in IT 2003Best Places to Work in IT 2004Best Places to Work in IT 2005Best Places to Work in IT 2006Business Intelligence Home RunsBusiness Intelligence: Smarter BIBusiness Intelligence: The Future of BICRM Goes VerticalCRM: Sober CRMCareer Planning Guide 2005Careers: IT Profession 2010Computerworld Horizon Awards 2005Data Management: Mining for GemsData Management: Taming Data ChaosDevelopment: Hard-Workin' Web SitesDevelopment: New Tools New ChoicesDevelopment: The New World of Application DevelopmentDevelopment: The Web Services TsunamiDevelopment: Web Services HurdlesDisaster Recovery: Preparing for the WorstE-commerce Grows UpE-mail/Groupware: Big DecisionsFaces of Mobile ITForecast 2006Global MobileHardware: Multiple Cores, Multiple ChallengesHardware: On-Demand Un-HypedHardware: The Shape of Things to ComeHorizon Awards: 10 Cool Cutting Edge TechnologiesIT Management: Guide to Managing VendorsIT Management: Navigating Global ITIT Management: Recovery AheadIT Management: The Future of ITIT Management: The Resourceful Project ManagerInnovative Technology Awards 2004Management: Reinventing ITMicrosoft in TransitionMobile/Wireless Leaders and LaggardsMobile/Wireless: The Untethered WorkerMobile/Wireless: Tiny Gadgets, Huge CostsNetwork Management: Taking ControlNetworking: Turbulence Ahead!Networking: VoIP Goes MainstreamOperating Systems: In the Slow LaneOperating Systems: Linux Goes GlobalOperating Systems: Should You Nix Unix?Outsourcing: Offshore Buyer's GuideOutsourcing: Outsourcing DangersPremier 100 IT Leaders 2004 Best in ClassPremier 100 IT Leaders 2005 Best in ClassROI: Do the Math!Salary Survey 2003Salary Survey 2004Salary Survey 2005Security Action PlanSecurity: Compliance HeadachesSecurity: Proactive SecuritySecurity: Risk and RewardSecurity: Tips From Security ProsSouped-up SecurityStorage: Battling ComplexityStorage: Cheap & Secure Data StoresStorage: Stretching Your Storage DollarsStorage: The Lean Storage MachineStorage: The New Rules of StorageStorage: The Ultimate Backup GuideSupply Chain: Missing LinksSupply Chain: RFID Reality CheckThe Business of SecurityWeb 2.0 SecurityWireless: Wireless At Work All Zones Application Performance Zone Enterprise-Class Security Zone Enterprise Solutions Zone The File Data Management Zone Grid Computing on Windows Zone Security Management Zone ITIL Best Practices Zone The SAS Zone Storage Virtualization Zone The Data Center Management Zone See your link here

Computerworld Report: Virtual Reality Download this Computerworld Report, free for a limited time, compliments of HP. (Source: Computerworld) The data center is real, but storage is turning virtual at many organizations that need to manage exploding storage needs. Learn how virtualizing your enterprise will save you money in this Computerworld Report, a $49.95 value, available free for a limited time, compliments of HP. Download this executive briefing  Virtualization Everywhere Download this white paper, free, compliments of Citrix. (Source: Citrix) Adoption of virtualization is concentrated among large enterprises, while adoption by mid-sized companies has been much slower. For these companies, the cost and complexity of server virtualization solutions has been a barrier. In this paper, we'll discuss how Citrix XenServer" provides simple, economical server virtualization for any size company. Download now! Download this white paper  Long Tail Supplier Collaboration - What's In It For You? Long Tail Supplier Collaboration - What's In It For You? Download this webcast, free, compliments of Sterling Commerce Go to the webcast  White Papers Read up on the latest ideas and technologies from companies that sell hardware, software and services. Securing Financial Services Beyond the Perimeter Intercept Spam & Viruses With MessageLabs Meeting PCI Compliance with SonicWALL Global Management System View more whitepapers

• Mozilla launches Firefox 3.0 RC1 early
• Microsoft: Don't misunderstand UAC, other Vista features
• HP confirms XP SP3 endless reboot snafu, promises patch
• More top stories 

Computerworld Executive Briefing: Automating Network Management IThis briefing looks at the basics of network management, which tend to get lost in the dizzying array of products and processes. It also examines new tools that are on the way to help IT executives deal with management in the new era of automation. Download this Executive Briefing now (a $195.00 value), compliments of ProCurve Networking by HP.



XenServer FREE trial Citrix XenServer is the simplest and most effective way to virtualize and provision servers. XenServer combines comprehensive server virtualization capabilities with unparalleled scalability, performance, economics, and ease-of-use. Based on the open source Xen hypervisor, XenServer delivers fast performance, easy management, and advanced features such as live migration. Request free trial now