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Wireless LAN Security Falls Short of Expectations

Security is still the number one inhibitor to enterprise adoption of wireless LAN technologies.

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Wireless LAN vendors have failed to deliver interoperable, highly secure wireless LANs, according to Meta Group.

Three years after initial concerns about wireless LAN security arose, achieving a highly secure enterprise wireless LAN remains a challenge. Vendors have succeeded only in confusing the market by offering solutions that are complex, costly to implement, and often cumbersome to support, analysts say.

Despite the continued growth of the consumer wireless LAN market, total revenues from enterprise wireless LAN sales have recently declined. Enterprises have resisted adopting wireless LANs due to the immaturity of security and management standards, Meta Group analysts say.

Although new standards are emerging, the technology is still too complex, forcing companies to delay wireless LAN deployment, according to Chris Kozup, program director with Meta Group's technology research services. Standards remain immature and vendors continue to push their individual agendas, he adds.

Enterprises should be aware of the complexity that remains in securing wireless LANs. Organizations will be forced to select a wireless system from a single vendor or take a virtual private network (VPN) security approach until standards stabilize in 2005, Meta Group notes. By 2006, the integration of wireless features into the wired infrastructure will ease operational complexities and let companies treat wireless LANs as just another network-access medium.