Meru Networks announced RF Barrier, the next salvo in the industry's on-going battle against piggybackers and hackers who access networks from parking lots or other areas within range of a corporate WLAN’s signal. Unlike counter-measures that use encryption to scramble sensitive data, RF Barrier fights fire with fire by transmitting over Wi-Fi signals that would otherwise propagate farther than intended.
"Wireless security has largely been about applying wired techniques [like encryption and IPS]," said Joe Epstein, Meru's senior director of technology. "But most really damaging attacks have taken advantage of wireless signal bleed into areas like parking lots. Those [passive eavesdropping attacks] are the worst because they cannot be detected electronically. This is where RF Barrier comes in, to stop signals from reaching perimeter attackers." (more)
How RF Barrier Works
from their press release...
"RF Barrier (patent pending) is installed by mounting a Meru Networks wireless access point along the inside perimeter of a building, and an advanced external antenna outside the perimeter. RF Barrier technology inspects the traffic in real time to determine which part belongs to the WLAN (and is therefore designated as sensitive) and uses the external antenna to block outbound traffic at the RF layer. Would-be attackers are limited in their ability to see useful packet information about the internal network.
Because RF Barrier uses directional antennas and selective enforcement technology, it has no impact on signals within the building or from other networks. Internal clients connect normally, with enterprise access points serving them at full speed. RF Barrier can be turned on and off as needed, giving enterprises the flexibility to allow access at certain times of day while restricting it at others." In short, it drowns out the real signal."
The fine print... "Available beginning in September 2008 for networks using any Meru 802.11a/b/g access points."
