Wi-Fi - From WEP till WPA3

From WEP till WPA3

It all started with WEP – the “security” protocol that was about as useful as a screen door on a submarine. If you ever sniffed air traffic with Aircrack-ng and cracked a key in under 5 minutes, you know what I'm talking about.

WEP – The Laughing Stock of Security

RC4 stream cipher? Shared key across the whole damn SSID? IV reuse? Man... WEP wasn’t broken. It was born broken. And yet, back in 2003, people called it "enterprise-grade".

WPA – The Quick Fix

So WPA came in like duct tape – still using RC4, but wrapped in TKIP. Better, but not bulletproof. It was more like, “let’s survive until we can fix this properly.”

WPA2 – The New Gold Standard (for a While)

AES, CCMP, 4-Way Handshake. Suddenly, Wi-Fi got grown-up encryption. But... we still had pre-shared keys floating around like candy. And nobody wanted to deal with 802.1X unless forced.

WPA3 – Welcome to the Future, Finally

Enter SAE (Simultaneous Authentication of Equals) – no more pre-shared key mess. Every handshake is fresh. No offline dictionary attacks. Finally, Wi-Fi security that doesn’t suck out of the box. WPA3 says: "Hey, if you’ve got a password, you better prove you know it – the hard way."

WEP – When Wi-Fi Was Young and Dumb

WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) was the OG “security” thingy slapped into early 802.11 to keep wireless data sorta safe from nosy neighbors. The goal? Make Wi-Fi feel like good ol’ Ethernet. The result? Not even close, mate.

How WEP Did Its Thing (or Tried To)

Keys & IVs:
WEP used a 40-bit key (yeah, tiny). Some vendors got “fancy” and gave you 104-bit keys.
It added a 24-bit IV (Initialization Vector), and together they called it a 64-bit or 128-bit key (marketing magic).
The IV was sent in plain sight over the air – classic rookie move.
Encryption:
WEP rocked the RC4 stream cipher (aka "fast but fragile").
It XORed your data with a keystream built from the key + IV. Basic, brittle stuff.
Integrity Check (ICV):
It tacked on a CRC-32 hash to check if stuff got messed up in transit. Not strong. Not enough.

Why WEP Fell Flat

Back in the day, folks didn’t see hackers coming. But soon Wi-Fi hacking became a sport – and WEP became a joke. Here’s what broke it:

Short IVs in Plaintext:
24 bits ain’t enough. Reuse was common. Sniff enough packets and boom – you’ve got the key.
Weak Integrity:
Bit-flip attacks were easy. Just tweak the frame and patch the ICV. No one noticed.
Static Keys Everywhere:
You had to manually set keys on all devices. People rarely changed them. Stolen laptop? Enjoy the network.
RC4 Goofups:
RC4 wasn’t the worst, but WEP’s way of using it – especially repeating IVs – made it crumble.
Attack Heaven:
Brute force? Check. Dictionary attacks? Check. Re-injection? Yep. Weak-IV attacks? Hell yes.
Even a laptop from 2004 could crack it in minutes.

The Verdict – WEP Is Dead. Let It Rot.

WEP is toast. Burnt toast. Useless in any modern Wi-Fi setup. Even 802.11-2012 says it straight: "Don’t use WEP. Like, ever."

It might still be hiding in legacy systems or so-called “Transitional Security Networks” (TSNs), but if you care about your packets, run – don’t walk – to WPA2 or better yet, WPA3.

The End of WEP

WEP got wrecked by the hacker crowd. High-profile break-ins lit a fire under the standards bodies. Enter: WPA. IEEE eventually marked WEP as obsolete. Good call.

RC4 – The Stream Cipher That Got Way Too Much Action

Alright, so RC4 (stands for Rivest Cipher 4) was cooked up back in 1987 by Ron Rivest – yeah, the RSA guy. It’s a stream cipher, which means it spits out a never-ending line of bits you mix with your data to keep it secret. RC4 got super famous in Wi-Fi thanks to WEP and later TKIP. But fame doesn’t mean greatness. Let’s dig in.

What RC4 Actually Did

RC4 takes your data – the plain text – and smashes it together with a random-looking bit stream, called a keystream.
They’re mashed using XOR (yeah, that weird logic thing where 1+1=0).
The result? Encrypted gibberish (ciphertext) flying through the air.
It’s fast, super light, and doesn’t wait around like block ciphers do.

RC4 in WEP – The Trainwreck Begins

WEP used RC4 with a combo of a short 40-bit key (lol) and a 24-bit IV (initialization vector).
Problem: that IV? Sent in cleartext. Over the air. Every single time. Genius, right?
So attackers already had the first 24 bits of your “secret.” All they needed was patience – and a laptop from 2005.
RC4 wasn’t the villain here – it was how WEP used it. Reused IVs? Total no-go.
And WEP had no real integrity checks – its CRC-32 “ICV” was weak. Bit-flipping became an art form.

RC4 in TKIP – Trying to Clean Up the Mess

TKIP was like, “Okay, WEP sucks, let’s put band-aids on it.” It still used RC4 but made things a bit less stupid.
They added a 48-bit IV (finally!), and a better integrity check – MIC, aka “Michael.”
Still, TKIP had known issues. It was never meant to last. Just a temp patch until real security showed up (hi WPA2).

So... Is RC4 Dead?

Pretty much. RC4 itself wasn’t evil – but the way WEP and TKIP used it? Disaster. That’s why modern Wi-Fi like WPA3 bans the whole mess: no WEP, no TKIP, and definitely no RC4. If you still see it in your config? Turn that junk off.

RC4: Thanks for your service, but we’ve moved on. No hard feelings. Just better encryption.

WPA – The Emergency Patch Job

WPA was the quick fix. Wi-Fi Alliance duct-taped it together with TKIP on RC4. It worked better than WEP, but it was no long-term plan.

WPA-Personal (PSK Mode)

Everyone shared one password – the PSK. Yep, that’s it.
First came open system auth + association – no real protection there.
PSK → PMK → PTK – standard key ladder.
Then came the 4-Way Handshake – EAPoL key frames flying around to set up PTK and GTK.
Encrypted with RC4, keys shuffled by TKIP. Kinda okay, but meh today.

WPA-Enterprise (802.1X/EAP)

More serious: it used 802.1X and needed a RADIUS server.
Three players: Supplicant (client), Authenticator (AP), Auth Server (RADIUS).
After the usual open auth + assoc, it ran the EAP show.
Used EAPoL for client-to-AP, RADIUS for AP-to-server. Real identity checks via LDAP etc.
PMK came from the EAP method. Then same 4-Way Handshake to do the encryption dance

Why WPA Is Past Its Prime

Look, WPA helped bridge the WEP disaster, but it was always temporary. TKIP is now banned on 6 GHz, WEP too. We’ve moved on to CCMP/AES (WPA2) and SAE (WPA3). If you're still stuck on WPA? Time to upgrade or unplug.

TKIP – The Duct Tape Fix Between WEP and Real Security

So back when WEP got totally roasted for being a leaky bucket of a security protocol, we needed something – anything – to hold things together until the real fix (aka WPA2) was ready. Enter TKIP: the “temporary fix” that hung around way too long.

Same Cipher, Slightly Less Dumb

TKIP still used RC4 (just like WEP – yeah, that old thing), but the way it used it was... let’s say... less tragic. It came with some upgrades that made cracking Wi-Fi a bit harder for your average script kiddie.

What TKIP Did Better Than WEP

Longer IV: Instead of WEP’s tiny 24-bit IV, TKIP used a 48-bit sequence counter (called TSC). Way more bits = fewer repeats = harder to replay.
MIC ("Michael"): A baby integrity check to catch frame tampering. Not super strong (only 20-bit effective), but had a cool trick: if you screw up two MICs in 60 seconds, your device gets a 60-second timeout. Nice... until you DoS yourself by accident.
Per-Packet Key Mixing: Every packet got a slightly different key by mixing sender address, TSC, and a temp key. That helped avoid reusing keystreams (WEP’s biggest sin).
Dynamic Rekeying: TKIP could refresh encryption keys without rebooting the world. WEP couldn’t.

Backwards-Compatible and Patchable

One smart move? TKIP was made to work on old WEP hardware – just needed a firmware update. That made it perfect as a stopgap: better than nothing, and didn’t need a forklift upgrade of your whole network.

But... It Had Issues

TKIP came with baggage:

Still Flawed: People still found ways to inject traffic, pull off DoS attacks, and generally mess with your Wi-Fi party.
Slow as Heck: If you used TKIP with 802.11n or later? Boom – no MCS rates, no high speed, stuck at 54 Mbps max. Might as well be on dial-up.
Too Much Overhead: TKIP added 20 bytes per frame. That’s chunky when you’re working with lots of small packets.
Deprecated: IEEE called it quits. TKIP is now labeled as “unsuitable for the purposes of this standard”. In nerd-speak, that means: don’t use it.
WPA3 Bans It: The latest Wi-Fi security standard flat-out bans TKIP (and WEP). No more “legacy compatibility” excuses. Just don’t.

The Verdict

TKIP did its job – a solid patch while WPA2 was baking in the oven. But now? It’s like still using a flip phone in a 5G world. If your gear still talks TKIP, it’s time to upgrade – fast.

Modern networks should be rocking WPA2 with CCMP/AES, or better yet, WPA3. TKIP had its moment – now let it rest.

MIC – The Bouncer That Keeps Your Handshake Legit

MIC (Message Integrity Check) is like the watchdog of the 4-Way Handshake. It's not encryption, it's not authentication – it's that little security gremlin yelling, "Yo, this frame better not be tampered with!"

What MIC Does

In short: MIC makes sure no one's messing with your key exchange during handshake. If someone tweaks even a single bit of the handshake message, MIC throws a red flag and kills the party. No integrity? No keys. Period.

Where MIC Shows Up – The 4-Way Handshake

Step 3 of the 4-Way Handshake: The AP (authenticator) builds a fancy EAPoL-Key message, which includes the Group Key (GTK), the ANonce, and other goodies.
Before sending it, the AP calculates a MIC using the PTK that it derived earlier from the PMK (based on PSK or 802.1X/EAP).
The client (supplicant) gets this frame, checks the MIC using its own PTK calc, and if it matches – boom, trust established.
If it fails? Something’s fishy – maybe an attacker is spoofing or replaying stuff. Either way, handshake denied.

MIC in Fast Transition (FT)

Even during fast roaming – when a client’s bouncing between APs like a pro – MIC makes sure the transition messages aren’t messed with. Target AP checks that MIC and says, “Yep, you're the real one,” before letting traffic flow.

MIC ain’t flashy, but it's key (pun intended) to making sure the handshake doesn't get hijacked mid-flight. No MIC = no trust = no secured Wi-Fi. So yeah, tiny field, big responsibility.

WPA2 – The OG of Real Wi-Fi Security

So yeah, WPA2 dropped in 2004 like a breath of fresh encrypted air. After the disaster that was WEP, and the duct-tape job called WPA (with TKIP), WPA2 brought the big guns – proper encryption, solid handshake, and the kinda security that made Wi-Fi actually usable in the real world.

It’s based on 802.11i and for years was the standard. Even today, it’s still out there holding the line, while WPA3 slowly tries to take over the world.

CCMP / AES – Finally, Encryption That Doesn’t Suck

CCMP is what makes WPA2 worth your trust. It’s built on AES, not that leaky RC4 stream cipher WEP and TKIP clung to.
AES is a block cipher – 128-bit block size, key lengths of 128, 192, or 256 bits – and yeah, it’s rock solid.
CCMP uses CTR mode for encrypting and CBC-MAC for message integrity. Think: fast + secure + only 16 bytes of overhead per frame. Neat, huh?

WPA2 can fall back to TKIP if it absolutely has to (for grandma’s 2006 Wi-Fi printer or whatever), but that’s bad news. TKIP’s deprecated and drags performance down to 54 Mbps max. Use CCMP/AES or go home.

WPA2-Personal – The PSK Game

This one’s for your home Wi-Fi. Just one shared password for everyone. Simple, but a little risky.

You type in a passphrase – out comes a 256-bit PSK.
The PSK turns into a PMK, and boom, you’re in business with the 4-Way Handshake spitting out a PTK and GTK for encrypting traffic.
Weakness: If someone sniffs the handshake and your passphrase is "password123"... well, it’s game over.
Also: KRACK attack (2017) hit this pretty hard. Fixes were rolled out, but yeah, it wasn’t pretty.

WPA2-Enterprise – For the Big Kids

Now we’re talkin’ real security. No shared keys here – you log in like a proper grown-up.

Uses 802.1X for access control and EAP for flexible authentication (PEAP, EAP-TLS, you name it).
A RADIUS server handles the user auth behind the scenes. Could be hooked into LDAP, Active Directory, whatever floats your enterprise boat.
You get mutual authentication – both client and server verify each other – no sketchy fake APs allowed.
The handshake still happens after EAP, but every session gets its own PMK/PTK combo. No one shares anything. That’s security done right.

Key Hierarchy – Follow the Keys

Here's how all the crypto goodness flows:

MSK (Master Session Key): Comes from PSK or EAP. Top of the chain.
PMK: The main pairing key, pulled from the MSK.
PTK: Used for encrypting unicast traffic. Generated fresh for each connection.
GTK: For broadcast/multicast. Shared among all clients in a BSS.
GMK: Hidden behind the curtain – the AP uses this to create GTKs.

Fast Roaming – Because VoIP Doesn’t Like Buffering

Normal WPA2 roaming? Slow. Like... really slow. That’s bad news for voice or real-time apps.

So we got a few tricks to speed things up:

PMK Caching: If you reconnect to the same AP – skip the 802.1X and jump right into the handshake.
OKC (Opportunistic Key Caching): Fancy workaround to roam fast across APs in a group. Not a standard, but it works (sometimes).
802.11r (Fast BSS Transition): The real deal. Pre-calculates keys before the roam. Part of the Wi-Fi Voice-Enterprise spec. Smooth and secure handoffs.

WPA2 Today – Still Kicking, But Aging Fast

WPA2 was the king for over a decade. But attacks like KRACK showed it’s not bulletproof. Now with WPA3 around, it’s time to think about upgrading – especially if you're still on PSK mode.

Also, 802.11-2020 says: TKIP = bad. Deprecated. Unsuitable. Don’t use it. WPA3 doesn’t even allow it, or WEP for that matter.

WPA2 with CCMP/AES is still okay. But if you're planning anything new – go WPA3. It’s stronger, safer, and future-proof.

CCMP – The Muscle Behind WPA2 Encryption

Alright, so CCMP is the encryption champ that powers WPA2. It came in to clean up the hot mess left behind by WEP and TKIP. And yeah, it does the job right.

Built on AES – The Real Deal

AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) is a block cipher – not a stream cipher like RC4 – and it’s symmetric, meaning both ends use the same key.
It works on 128-bit blocks and supports 128, 192, or 256-bit keys. Basically: tough as nails.
Breaking AES? You’ll need a warehouse of supercomputers and a few million years. So yeah – safe enough.
In fancy WPA3-Enterprise 192 setups, it even runs with AES-256-GCM for that “government-grade” vibe.

CCMP – It’s Got Modes, Baby

For encryption? It uses CTR mode – that’s Counter Mode – it’s fast, secure, and doesn’t mess around.
For message integrity? CBC-MAC (Cipher Block Chaining – Message Authentication Code). Yeah, try flipping bits and getting away with it.
CCMP checks the MPDU data *and* key parts of the Wi-Fi header – because trust issues.

No More Per-Packet Key Juggling

Unlike TKIP, CCMP doesn’t need to pull a new key out of a hat for every single frame. Why? Because AES is strong enough to not freak out over key reuse – as long as the nonces are good. And they are.

The secret sauce (your actual encryption keys) never hit the air. Devices trade some randoms and IDs (nonces, MACs, etc.), and each side builds the key by themselves. Neat trick, huh?

The PTK – that’s the key used for your unicast traffic – comes from the PMK, the MAC addresses, and those random nonces you swap during the 4-Way Handshake.

Overhead? Pretty Chill

CCMP adds 16 bytes of extra data per frame – 8 bytes for the header, 8 for the MIC (Message Integrity Code).
WEP added 8 bytes total. TKIP? 20. So yeah, CCMP hits a nice balance – tight and efficient.

TKIP Who?

WPA2 officially requires CCMP/AES. That’s the baseline. Anything less is legacy trash.
TKIP is optional for compatibility with ancient hardware, but honestly? If you're still using it, you're stuck at 54 Mbps (max) and you can't use high-speed MCS rates. So why bother?
The 802.11-2020 standard straight-up calls TKIP deprecated and unsuitable. Mic drop.

AES – The Muscle Behind Modern Wi-Fi Encryption

AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) is a symmetric block cipher. That means it uses the same key to lock and unlock your data – no fancy public/private pair dance here.

A Bit of Backstory

Cooked up by NIST in 2001 to replace the old, crusty DES.
Based on the Rijndael algorithm – say it however you like, just know it kicks ass.
Works on fixed blocks of 128 bits – that’s the chunk size.
Supports keys in 128, 192, or 256 bits. The longer the key, the beefier the security.
Still rock solid by today's standards – cracking AES would take some doomsday supercomputer and a few thousand years.
But hey – like all crypto, even AES has an expiry date... someday. Just not today.

CCMP – AES Suited Up for Wi-Fi

Enter CCMP, the AES-based warrior inside WPA2. It stands for "Counter Mode with Cipher-Block Chaining Message Authentication Code Protocol" – yep, that acronym is doing overtime.

How It Works (a.k.a. Magic in Motion)

Uses CTR mode (that’s "Counter Mode") to encrypt your data. Bit-by-bit, XOR-style. Super fast, super smooth.
For integrity? It brings in CBC-MAC to keep things tight and untampered.
It protects the actual data and also bits of the 802.11 header – because trust, but verify.
No more RC4 nonsense – AES is now in the driver's seat.
Uses a 48-bit IV (also called PN or Packet Number) – longer, stronger, and less predictable.
The MIC it calculates is 8 bytes long – way stronger than TKIP’s janky "Michael" check.
Per-packet keys? Not needed anymore. AES handles things with way more class.
The heavy lifting? Usually done in hardware – your CPU gets to chill.
Keys never fly through the air – devices do some behind-the-scenes magic with nonces and MACs to build the needed keys on their own.

Key Stuff: WPA2 + AES + CCMP = Secure

All those keys? They’re generated dynamically during the 4-Way Handshake ritual (yes, it’s real), which goes like this:

PTK (Pairwise Transient Key) = the main key used for your unicast stuff. Built from the PMK + MAC addresses + nonces.
GTK (Group Temporal Key) = for multicast and broadcast, cooked up by the AP using a Group Master Key (GMK).
Both keys are installed securely during the 4-Way Handshake. No shortcuts.

Overhead? Not Too Bad

CCMP adds 16 bytes per frame – 8 for the header, 8 for the MIC.
WEP? Added 8 bytes. TKIP? That was a chunky 20 bytes total.
So yeah, CCMP hits that sweet spot of "secure but lean."

Where It Stands Today

WPA2 requires CCMP/AES. That’s the baseline for being called secure.
WPA2 can allow TKIP for backward compatibility, but... don’t. Just don’t.
Using TKIP with 802.11n or newer? Enjoy your 54 Mbps cap. No high-speed MCS for you.
TKIP is dead – the 802.11-2020 standard says so, loud and clear: "unsuitable" and "deprecated."
WPA3 bans WEP and TKIP entirely. It’s AES or nothing, baby.
WPA3-Enterprise 192? Even fancier – uses AES-256-GCM for max security swagger.

The Takeaway

CCMP + AES = the real MVP of Wi-Fi security. It’s efficient, hard to break, hardware-accelerated, and still going strong in WPA3. If you’re not using it? You’re either in a museum or doing it wrong.

Moving On – Enter WPA3

WPA3 keeps building on the good stuff. No more support for WEP or TKIP – those are banned. And if you’re in the fancy club (WPA3-Enterprise 192), you get AES-256-GCM with 192-bit equivalent strength. Spicy.

CCMP is rock solid. Built on AES, wrapped in CTR + CBC-MAC, and totally fine for anything from home setups to enterprise networks. It’s the backbone of WPA2 and still alive and kickin’ in WPA3.

WPA3 ain't just some new Wi-Fi voodoo – it’s the real security deal

Look... WPA3 is not a single thingy – it's a whole certification package for Wi-Fi security. It’s here to fix all that broken junk left behind by WEP, WPA, and yeah, even WPA2. Basically, it says: "Out with the weak stuff, in with some real protection."

Why we even needed this?

Because WPA2 got old and crusty. It had holes. Big ones.

KRACK Attacks (2017): Someone figured out how to break the 4-way handshake (yep, the thing that's supposed to keep your Wi-Fi safe). They reset encryption keys and replayed stuff, making it possible to sniff and decrypt your Wi-Fi traffic. Even AES couldn’t save you from that circus.
Old Protocols = trash: WPA3 kicks out WEP and TKIP for good. Those dinosaurs are done. No more speed limits, no more jokes about 54 Mbps. Finally.

So what’s new in WPA3?

1. Only AES allowed in the club

No TKIP, no RC4, just strong AES encryption with CCMP. You get 128-bit blocks and keys up to 256-bit. Solid stuff. Strong enough you don’t need per-packet keys anymore.

2. SAE – Simultaneous Authentication of Equals (sounds fancy)

Forget PSK. WPA3 uses SAE for better handshake and auth magic. It’s built on Elliptic Curve Diffie-Hellman. That means both sides make the key – no one sends it, no one can sniff it. Even if your password’s kinda dumb, it’s still safer.

Way better protection against offline brute-force stuff.
Even has some “forward secrecy” – if your passphrase leaks later, your past sessions are still locked tight.

3. PMF – Protected Management Frames

Before WPA3, anyone could spoof a disconnect or deauth packet. Now with PMF (802.11w), all that stuff is signed and sealed. No more easy DoS tricks or hijacks. It's now required in WPA3.

4. WPA3-Enterprise goes full tank mode

Just like WPA2-Enterprise, but now with mandatory PMF and an ultra-secure version called WPA3-Enterprise 192 for those paranoid about quantum computers.

Uses AES-256-GCM for encryption, SHA384 for hashing
Keys from ECDH-P384 and signed with ECDSA-P384
This thing ain’t messing around. It's future-proof (at least for now).

Other cool stuff hanging around WPA3

Easy Connect (DPP)

For IoT devices with no keyboard – just scan a QR code. Secure onboarding without typing nonsense. Public-key cryptography behind the scenes. Even your fridge gets in the network safely.

OWE (Enhanced Open)

Think: Wi-Fi at the coffee shop, but now encrypted. No login, no password, just automatic encryption via ECC magic. Keeps your Instagram scrolling private without any fuss.

WPA3 beefs up Wi-Fi big time:

Only AES, no more legacy trash
SAE for real handshake integrity
PMF keeps you from being booted by script kiddies
Enterprise mode ready for quantum drama

It’s about time Wi-Fi security grew up. WPA3’s got the muscles WPA2 never really had. If your gear supports it – turn it on. Now.

SAE – The New Kid That Kicked PSK Out

SAE (Simultaneous Authentication of Equals) is the new core engine behind WPA3-Personal. It ain't no boring PSK anymore – this thing's smarter, sneakier, and way harder to mess with. Designed to block those offline password smashers and brute-force guessers. Let’s break it down like an old router config file...

How does SAE work anyway?

1. You still type a password, BUT...

Yeah, users still punch in that passphrase – just like with WPA2.
But this time, the password doesn’t get used straight to build the PMK (Pairwise Master Key).
Instead, it kicks off a dance between the client and AP, where they both prove they’re legit – no key sent in the clear.

2. Secret Key Party – But Nobody Talks

The PMK is made separately by both the client and the AP.
Each side keeps its private key, shares just a public hash – a little "Hello there, but I’m not telling you anything real."
They mash up their own secret with what they got from the other side and – bam! – same PMK, no leaks.
A snooper? Even with the passphrase? Nah. Can’t build the session key from just watching the air.

3. Elliptic Curve What Now? ECC, Baby!

SAE uses Elliptic Curve Cryptography – no, not some rollercoaster, it’s high-end math magic.
Both sides got public and private keys, using fancy point tricks on a curve (yeah, real math stuff) to make secret keys that stay secret.
Even if someone somehow guessed your password, good luck reverse-engineering the session keys. Not gonna happen.

4. Offline Attackers Be Gone

Since both sides build keys locally, and nothing sensitive gets sent over the air, even offline brute-forcers hit a wall.
WPA3 also throws “tokens” into the mix. Get too greedy with connection tries? The AP starts limiting your shots. You’re locked out, hacker-boy.

5. Forward Secrecy – Protect Yo' Past

SAE gives you forward secrecy. Means even if your passphrase gets pwned in the future, your past session keys stay untouchable.
Old traffic stays safe. No time machine for attackers here.

6. Still Got the Classic 4-Way Handshake

After SAE does its cryptographic handshake magic, we still use the good ol’ 4-way handshake.
It sets up PTK (for you) and GTK (for everyone else). All based on the fresh PMK SAE just baked behind the scenes.
By Frame 4, everything’s locked and loaded, and both sides know they’re talkin’ to the real deal.

7. Mandatory PMF – No PMF, No Party

WPA3-SAE-only mode means you must have PMF (Protected Management Frames).
No more deauth spoofing or disconnect chaos from pranksters.
If your client or AP doesn’t support PMF, the connection’s straight-up denied. Harsh but secure.

SAE takes Wi-Fi security from “meh” to “finally.” No more lazy PSK reuse, no more offline cracking games, and a lot more peace of mind. Now all we need is everyone to actually turn it on.

PMF – The Bouncer at the Wi-Fi Club

Protected Management Frames (PMF), aka 802.11w, is that no-nonsense bodyguard that finally says: “No more deauth spam and frame fakery in my network!” It's all about stopping spoofed management frames from ruining your wireless party.

Why We Even Need This Stuff

Back in the bad ol’ WPA2 days, management frames (like Deauth and Disassoc) were wide open – like sending break-up notes with no signature.
Bad guys could kick clients off the network, force them to reconnect to a rogue AP, or just cause chaos with a laptop and a Wi-Fi stick.
Enter WPA3 – and boom! SAE and OWE both require PMF. You don’t get in the club without it.
PMF wraps those frames in a digital seatbelt – if it ain’t legit, it don’t fly.

How PMF Actually Works

It’s all about locking down those important 802.11 management frames – we’re talkin’ Deauth, Disassoc, and the so-called “Robust Action Frames.”
Unlike WEP or TKIP (which only cared about data), PMF cares about the control stuff – the backstage passes of Wi-Fi.
With PMF enabled, only properly authenticated clients and APs can end a session. No more “random stranger says you're disconnected.”
If either side doesn’t support PMF (and it's required), guess what? No handshake, no connection. Go home.

What Frames Are Covered?

Protected: Deauthentication frames, Disassociation frames, and Robust Action frames.
Not protected: Data frames (that’s the job of CCMP/AES and friends).

Why This Is a Big Deal

Stops common attack tricks like Deauth floods. Wanna kick someone off Starbucks Wi-Fi? Not anymore, skippy.
It backs up forward secrecy by preventing old sessions from being tampered with if keys leak later. A sort of retroactive security hug.
It’s now mandatory in WPA3-Personal if you’re doing SAE-only mode. No PMF = no connect.

PMF ain't flashy, but it's essential. It’s like the security camera in your favorite dive bar – you might not notice it, but without it, the place gets shady fast. Want real Wi-Fi security in the WPA3 era? PMF or bust.

ECC – Not just math nerd stuff

Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) is some real next-level encryption magic. It's used in Wi-Fi stuff like OWE and WPA3-Personal to make sure your coffee shop chats ain’t getting hijacked. It’s a public-key system – meaning it uses one key to lock and another to unlock.

Key pairs: you get two keys, not one

Everybody in the game – client and AP – has a public and a private key.
Public key? Share away. Private key? Lock it in a vault and swallow the combo.

Mixed with Diffie-Hellman like a crypto cocktail

ECC shines when it's doing the Diffie-Hellman dance.
Goal? Both sides (you + AP) end up with the same secret key – the PMK – without ever shouting it across the air.

PMK makin’ step by step

Private keys stay private. No broadcast, no leaks.
Hash exchange: Each side throws some public hash across the air like “DH Hash A” and “DH Hash B.”
Magic happens: Each mixes the other’s hash with their own secret sauce. Out pops the same PMK on both sides.
Zero-Knowledge Proof: Even if someone’s eavesdropping, they don’t know squat – they can’t build the PMK. Not without knowing the private keys. Too bad, hackers.

Then comes the 4-way handshake

Once you got your shiny new PMK, time for the 4-way handshake.
That’s where the session keys – PTK and GTK – get cooked and shared securely.

Why ECC is the good stuff

Attack resistant: Those elliptic curves? Super hard to reverse. Even brute force goes home crying.
Forward Secrecy: If your password leaks next year, attackers still can't go back and decrypt last summer’s Wi-Fi binge. Sweet.
One key per client: Every session’s got its own flavor of PMK. If one gets wrecked, the rest stay chillin’.
Mandatory in new stuff: WPA3-Personal? Gotta use ECC. SAE? Built on ECC. WPA3-Enterprise 192? Uses big boys like ECDH-P384 and ECDSA-P384 to reach 192-bit kryptonite-level security.

Bottom line? ECC is like having a cryptographic bouncer guarding every Wi-Fi session. It’s efficient, paranoid, and totally badass.

OWE – What the heck is it?

OWE (Opportunistic Wireless Encryption) is kinda like WPA3’s cool cousin – not officially part of the WPA3 fam, but it’s hangin’ out at the same party. Basically, it makes your “open” Wi-Fi less like yelling in public and more like whisperin' behind a velvet curtain.

Why we even need this thing

Old-school open Wi-Fi? It’s like broadcastin’ your secrets on a megaphone.
Hackers can slurp up your juicy data like it’s free soup.
People don’t always use VPNs like they should – OWE’s got their back anyway.

So how does it even work?

Uses Diffie-Hellman + ECC – fancy crypto handshakes where nobody shouts their keys aloud.
Your device and the AP swap secret signals and boom, they cook up a private key that’s just theirs.
Snoopers? Outta luck. They see nothin’ useful.

What happens next?

After the cryptodance, there’s a good ol’ 4-way handshake – same vibe as WPA2-PSK but way sneakier.

Good news: Users do nothin’

No VPN to install. No password to type. It Just Works™.
Only catch: your device + the router both gotta speak OWE fluently.

PMF is non-negotiable

Protected Management Frames are in play. No rogue deauths, no cheap disconnection pranks.

How OWE-enabled networks behave

No fancy new hardware needed. Just updated firmware.
OWE routers whisper out beacon frames with hidden SSIDs. Your phone picks up the scent, joins, and voilà – encryption!
In OWE-only mode, old, clueless devices get kicked to the curb.

Why it's better than WPA2-PSK in cafés

With shared WPA2-PSK, one password leak means everyone’s traffic is toast.
OWE gives each client its own key. One gets cracked? The others keep chillin’.
Forward Secrecy: even if your key leaks someday, your old sessions stay buried and locked.

Buuut… don’t get cocky

OWE doesn’t do ID checks – it encrypts data but doesn’t care who you’re talkin’ to.
So yeah, a rogue AP with the same name can still trick you if you’re not careful.

OWE gives open Wi-Fi a private booth. It's not Fort Knox, but it's miles ahead of wide-open broadcasts. Use it at cafés, airports, and anywhere people connect like it’s 2005.

Wrap it up – From WEP to WPA3, the long strange trip

So yeah… wireless security’s been on a wild ride. From the totally broken WEP – which was like putting a paper door on a bank vault – to the kinda-better-but-still-clunky WPA, and then to the solid-but-ageing WPA2, and now the shiny new WPA3 with its crypto swagger and hardened heart.

WEP was a joke, but a start. WPA patched it, WPA2 ruled for years, but yeah – it got caught slippin’. And now WPA3? It’s the best we've got so far – modern, tough, and finally built with the kind of encryption even your paranoid sysadmin can nod at without flinching.

But hey, no security is forever. Algorithms age. CPUs get faster. Hackers never sleep. So just like WEP had its day (and death), WPA3 too will one day get replaced. The trick is to keep evolving, stay updated, and never trust a standard just because it has a long name.

The moral of the Wi-Fi story? Trust, but verify. Encrypt, then double-check. And never, ever, run open Wi-Fi in a hotel lobby with the SSID "FreeGuestNetwork" – 'cause you might just be handing your data to the guy sipping espresso in the corner with Wireshark open.

Stay paranoid, stay patched – and keep those packets locked down.

If you got the feeling now like “Yeah, I totally get Wi-Fi!” – then uh... nope. That was just a bit Security, my friend. There’s a whole bookshelf waitin’ for you if you wanna be a real Wi-Fi geek. CWNA, CWDP, CWSP, CWAP... yeah, it’s a ride. Buckle up.

Just a quick FYI:
This article’s got no tables or fancy graphics – on purpose. It’s built that way so screen readers and text-to-speech tools don’t freak out. Keepin’ it clean for the accessibility crew.

Heads up, Wi-Fi nerds:
This whole guide was put together using the CWNP books CWAP-404, CWAP-402 and CWSP-207. All the deep-dive stuff about WEP till WPA3, 802.11 weirdness, and packet wrangling comes straight outta those.

Details: Written by: Enrico Aderhold; Created: 01 August 2023; Hits: 11211