Wi-Fi standards and speeds explained, compared

In the world of wireless, the term Wi-Fi is synonymous with wireless access, even though the term Wi-Fi itself (and the Wi-Fi Alliance) is a group dedicated to interoperability between different wireless LAN products and technologies.

The standards themselves are part of the 802.11 family of standards, courtesy of the IEEE. With terms such as “802.11b” (pronounced “Eight-O-Two-Eleven-Bee”, ignore the “dot”) and “802.11ac”, the alphabet soup of standards that began in the late 1990s continues to see improvements in throughput and range as we race to the future to get faster network access.

Along the way, improvements are being made by adopting new frequencies for wireless data delivery, as well as range improvements and reduced power consumption, to help support initiatives like “The Internet of Things” and virtual reality.

 If it’s been some time since you’ve paid attention to all of the different letters of the 802.11 standards, here’s an update of where we’re situated with the physical (PHY) layer standards within 802.11, listed in reverse chronological order. At the bottom there are descriptions of standards still in the works.

802.11ah

Also known as Wi-Fi HaLow, 802.11ah defines operation of license-exempt networks in frequency bands below 1GHz (typically the 900 MHz band), excluding the TV White Space bands. In the U.S., this includes 908-928MHz, with varying frequencies in other countries. The purpose of 802.11ah is to create extended range Wi-Fi networks that go beyond typical networks in the 2.4GHz and 5GHz space (remember, lower frequency means longer range), with data speeds up to 347Mbps. In addition, the standard aims to have lower energy consumption, useful for Internet of Things devices to communicate across long ranges without using a lot of energy. But it also could compete with Bluetooth technologies in the home due to its lower energy needs. The protocol was approved in September 2016 and published in May 2017.

802.11ad

Approved in December 2012, 802.11ad is very fast - it can provide up to 6.7Gbps of data rate across the 60 GHz frequency, but that comes at a cost of distance – you achieve this only if your client device is situated within 3.3 meters (only 11 feet) of the access point.

802.11ac

Your current home wireless router (if you like keeping up with advances in the space) is likely an 802.1ac router that operates in the 5 GHz frequency space. With Multiple Input, Multiple Output (MIMO) – multiple antennas on sending and receiving devices to reduce error and boost speed – this standard supports data rates up to 3.46Gbps. Some router vendors include technologies that support the 2.4GHz frequency via 802.11n, providing support for older client devices that may have 802.11b/g/n radios, but also providing additional bandwidth for improved data rates

 802.11n

The first standard to specify MIMO, 802.11n was approved in October 2009 and  allows for usage in two frequencies - 2.4GHz and 5GHz, with speeds up to 600Mbps. When you hear wireless LAN vendors use the term “dual-band”, it refers to being able to deliver data across these two frequencies.

802.11g

Approved in June 2003, 802.11g was the successor to 802.11b, able to achieve up to 54Mbps rates in the 2.4GHz band, matching 802.11a speed but within the lower frequency range.

802.11a

The first “letter” following the June 1997 approval of the 802.11 standard, this one provided for operation in the 5GHz frequency, with data rates up to 54Mbps. This came out later than 802.11b, causing some confusion in the marketplace, since 802.11b products couldn’t work with 802.11a products due to the different frequency band.

802.11b

Released in September 1999, it’s most likely that your first home router was an 802.11b router, which operates in the 2.4GHz frequency and provided up to 11 Mbps of data rate. Interestingly, products hit the market before 802.11a, which was approved at the same time but didn’t hit the market until later.

802.11-1997

The first standard, providing up to 2 Mbps of data rate in the 2.4GHz frequency. It provided a whopping 66 feet of coverage indoors (330 feet outdoors), so if you owned one of these routers, you probably only used it in a single room.

Coming soon or already here

802.11aj

Also known as China Millimeter Wave, this defines modifications to the 802.11ad physical later and MAC layer to enable operation in the China 59-64GHz frequency band. The goal is to maintain backward compatibility with 802.11ad (60GHz) when it operates in that 59-64GHz range and to operate in the China 45GHz band, while maintaining the 802.11 user experience. Final approval was expected in November 2017.

802.11ak

There are some products in the home-entertainment and industrial-control spaces that have 802.11 wireless capability and 802.3 Ethernet function. The goal of this standard is to help 802.11 media provide internal connections as transit links within 802.1q bridged networks, especially in the areas of data rates, standardized security and quality-of-service improvements. Approval was expected in November 2017.

802.11ax

Known as High Efficiency WLAN, 802.11ax aims to improve the performance in WLAN deployments in dense scenarios, such as sports stadiums and airports, while still operating in the 2.4GHz and 5GHz spectrum. The group is targeting at least a 4X improvement in throughput compared to 802.11n and 802.11ac., through moreefficient spectrum utilization. Approval is currently estimated to be in July 2019.

802.11ay

Also known as Next Generation 60GHz, the goal of this standard is to support a maximum throughput of at least 20Gbps within the 60GHz frequency (802.11ad currently achieves up to 7Gbps), as well as increase the range and reliability. The standard is expected to be approved between September and November 2019.

802.11az

Called Next Generation Positioning (NGP), a study group was formed in January 2015 to address the needs of a “Station to identify its absolute and relative position to another station or stations it’s either associated or unassociated with.” The goals of the group would be to define modifications to the MAC and PHY layers that enable “determination of absolute and relative position with better accuracy with respect to the Fine Timing Measurement (MTM) protocol executing on the same PHY-type, while reducing existing wireless medium use and power consumption, and is scalable to dense deployments.” The current estimate on approval of this standard is March 2021.

802.11ba

Otherwise known as “Wake-Up Radio” (WUR), this isn’t a crazy morning zoo crew thing, but rather a new technology aimed at extending the battery life of devices and sensors within an Internet of Things network. The goal of the WUR is to “greatly reduce the need for frequent recharging and replacement of batteries while still maintaining optimum device performance.” This is currently expected to be approved in July 2020.

via NetworkWorld

How to speed up Wi-Fi

Here's how you can speed up slow Wi-Fi, and it doesn't necessarily involve buying any new kit. Our expert tips should boost your Wi-Fi.

Routers have their work cut out these days: every new gadget wants to get its internet connection via Wi-Fi. With smart home kit becoming more popular, including light bulbs, thermostats and security cameras, it’s not uncommon for your internet connection to slow down and put a stop to your Netflix binge session.

You might not have to spend any money to fix this: there are ways to speed up Wi-Fi for free. However, if slow broadband or an old router is the culprit, you might need to consider upgrading your package and hardware. Check out our recommendations for the best routers to buy.

But first, try these tips.

1. Move your router

We’ve seen it countless times: routers chucked underneath sofas or hidden in the corner. Sure, it’s understandable that you don’t want an ugly box ruining your immaculate lounge, but if you want good Wi-Fi you need to give your router some breathing space.

The best place for it is in the middle of your home. For most people that’s impossible because your phone line or cable box sits on a wall at the front of your property. However, if you can, get an telephone extension cable and relocate the router so it’s roughly in the centre and as high off the floor as you can.

This will give it the best chance of delivering strong, fast Wi-Fi to all areas.

2. Banish interference

Wi-Fi can be flaky at the best of times, but you’re making it worse if you put cordless phones, microwaves, baby monitors and Bluetooth devices near it. Even some fairly lights will interfere with the signal and reduce speeds to a sluggish pace not seen since dial-up modems from 1999.

So keep the area around the router clear of other electronic devices, or face the consequences.

3. Use the fastest settings

Routers aren’t the most user-friendly things. You shouldn’t be expected to understand the difference between Wi-Fi standards and frequencies, but only the best routers will automatically give you the fastest-possible speeds without some manual intervention.

Essentially, the vast majority of Wi-Fi devices right now use the 802.11n standard but, confusingly, there are two frequencies it can use. If your router is ‘dual-band’ it can deliver Wi-Fi on 2.4GHz and 5GHz.

Since 2.4GHz is more common, yours and all your neighbours’ gadgets are probably fighting it out to share the available channels.

If your phone, tablet, laptop or other device is capable of connecting on 5GHz, switch to that instead. As long as you’re relatively close to your router, you’ll get a faster more reliable connection.

Some routers broadcast two separate Wi-Fi networks so it’s easy to see which is which, but others (notably BT Home Hubs) combine them – you have to log in to the router to set it to show the two bands.

4. Upgrade the antennae

Some routers have aerials which can be unscrewed. If yours is like this you might be able to buy larger versions which have a higher gain. That means a faster, stronger Wi-Fi signal.

A cheaper method – which also helps if you can’t physically reposition your router – is to make a reflector that sits behind the router and bounces the signal back the other way.

Students at Dartmouth College successfully proved that a simple tin-foil reflector can effectively boost Wi-Fi coverage in the direction of the reflector. It also has a side benefit of limiting coverage behind it, so you don’t end up broadcasting into the road outside, or into your neighbours’ houses.

5. Reboot your router once in a while

It’s the computer expert’s standard reply, but have you tried turning it off and on again? This old trick cures a multitude of problems and you might just find that fast Wi-Fi is restored after a reboot.

One thing a reboot does is to kick every device off the network and force it to reconnect. It’s also worth setting a password that isn’t the default just in case anyone is leeching off your connection. With most modern routers secure out of the box, that’s pretty unlikely, but it’s always worth checking.

6. Upgrade your router

If you have an old model, it could well be time to buy something better. Wi-Fi technology has come a long way in the last few years and there are several options.

One is to replace the router with a newer model which uses 802.11ac (preferably get one that supports MU-MIMO for the best futureproofing).

They don't all look like the mad Asus model above but will improve coverage as well as speed. Unfortunately, not a whole lot of devices apart from high-end phones, laptops and tablets support 802.11ac yet so will end up using the slower 802.11n standard, which all current routers support.

A better option could be to invest in a set of powerline adapters with built-in Wi-Fi, although this is appropriate only if you have a certain corner of your home – even a single room – which is currently a Wi-Fi black spot.

More expensive, but also more effective, is to invest in a mesh Wi-Fi system. These kits contain multiple routers which talk to each other and spread consistently fast Wi-Fi across even the biggest homes.

via techadvisor.co.uk

There's a secret trick to boosting your Wi-Fi speed lurking in your kitchen

Take off your tin-foil hat, you’re going to need it for something else. The outlandish theory that foil improves a signal might not be so bogus after all.

Researchers at Dartmouth College found that the use of aluminium foil does indeed increase the range of Wi-Fi connections and can also improve its security.

The team, led by assistant professor Xia Zhou, placed a 3D-printed reflector made of just plastic and a thin layer of aluminium around a Wi-Fi router. The reflector redirected the wireless signal to the areas in the room that have limited wireless coverage, boosting weak spots.

After testing the reflector in two different rooms, the team found it could increase the strength of coverage by a whopping 6dB, the equivalent of one thick wall or ceiling. In the case of physical security, the reflector was able to decrease signal range in unwanted areas by 10dB, providing many obvious benefits for physical security.

“Not only do we strengthen wireless signals, we make those same signals more secure,” Xia Zhou, assistant professor at Dartmouth College, said in a press briefing.

The reflector improves on previous studies that involved the use of aluminium cans being placed behind Wi-Fi access points to improve the directional connection.

Wi-Fi is notoriously challenging for use indoors because of the frustratingly complex relationship between radio signals and environmental factors such as walls and furniture. Solutions that improve the strength of wireless connections can often break the bank. This research has found that all you actually need is a 3D-printed piece of plastic wrapped in foil that’s been directionally configured for the targeted area.

“With a simple investment of about $35 and specifying coverage requirements, a wireless reflector can be custom-built to outperform antennae that cost thousands of dollars,” said Zhou.

The team’s findings come just weeks after the discovery of the vulnerability in WPA2 Wi-Fi connections. The vulnerability saw users put at risk of being hacked, with experts suggesting that the flaw could be taken advantage of if the hacker was physically close to the target.

The team is now studying reflectors made of different materials and will examine higher-frequency bands, such as visible light and millimetre waves.

Now I’m off to make my own makeshift reflector and fix the office’s slow connection.

via alphr

Everyth1ng Y0u Kn0w Ab0ut P@ssw0rds 1s Wr0ng

Everyth1ng Y0u Kn0w Ab0ut P@ssw0rds 1s Wr0ng

New router-based solution protects home IoT devices

As we bring more and more smart devices into our homes, we potentially open ourselves up to a variety of new risks with devices opening back doors into networks or falling prey to botnets.

German antivirus company Avira is launching a new approach to home security which needs no new infrastructure on the domestic network and no configuration done by the user.

SafeThings sits within the home router and works with cloud-based machine learning. Avira licenses the product to router manufacturers and internet service providers, enabling them to protect networks from misuse and to deliver value-added IoT security services directly to end users.

"At Avira, we have been at the forefront of Artificial Intelligence innovation for a decade, being the first vendor within the security industry to identify how to apply AI to our field and to do it," says Travis Witteveen, CEO of Avira. "We have a wealth of experience in protecting both the privacy of end-users and the security of their traditional devices. Today we stand alone in the cyber security industry with the introduction of Avira SafeThings, an innovative router app and behavioral threat intelligence platform that secures all IoT devices in the home. We've designed SafeThings to effectively solve the IoT vulnerabilities without being too invasive, expensive, or complicated for the end user -- and we've done this in a way that provides additional benefits for the internet service providers and router manufacturers."

SafeThings is made up of a number of modules, Protection Cloud builds category and individual device profiles to create device management and rule definitions and automatically protect the device functionality. By analyzing metadata on gateway traffic, no invasive deep packet inspections are needed.

The Sentinel module is a software agent positioned at the gateway to each smart home, embedded in the firmware on the router, Sentinel fingerprints IoT devices and collects packet header metadata for AI analysis. After communicating with Protection Cloud, Sentinel enforces protection and communication rules.

A web-based user interface shows users in real time what each IoT device in their network is doing and enables them to see and modify firewall policies and device rules. There's also a Data Forefront API service that lets service providers and OEMs access and control SafeThings functionality, for example to drill down into specific details and control rules and actions to be taken in case of a compromised device.

It also allows for custom plugins to let SafeThings clients offer their end users additional security apps via a branded secure app store. These integrated services such as VPN or parental controls would operate at router level with management in the cloud.

"We see SafeThings as a 'B2B2C' product, providing consumers with the security and privacy protection they need while delivering it to them via the internet service providers and router manufacturers. As an embedded software solution, SafeThings is imminently flexible according to each client’s technical and marketing needs,” adds Witteveen.

You can find out more on the Avira website.

Image Credit: lucadp / depositphotos.com

via betanews

Is Coin Miner draining your Android device?

The TrendLabs Security Intelligence Blog has identified the Coin Miner mobile malware back in the Google Play store. The malware takes over a device and uses its resources to mine a selection of different cryptocurrencies. Users will often not realise what is going all. What they will see is poor battery life and degraded performance.

The apps are using several techniques to bypass security. The blog states: “These apps used dynamic JavaScript loading and native code injection to avoid detection. We detect these apps as ANDROIDOS_JSMINER and ANDROIDOS_CPUMINER.”

What apps were used by Coin Miner?

This attack is a change to the way coin mining solutions take control of machines. As the report states: “We’ve previously seen tech support scams and compromised websites used to deliver the Coinhive JavaScript cryptocurrency miner to users.” This move to using apps is different and given the success of other app based malware, could be more effective. Those users who jailbreak their devices to install anything are particularly at risk here, especially with the ANDROIDOS_CPUMINER attack.

The first of the two mining apps, ANDROIDOS_JSMINER takes advantage of two apps:

• Recitiamo Santo Rosario Free: This app helps users to recite the Holy Rosary.
• SafetyNet Wireless App: This is aimed at people enrolled in government assistance programs in the US who would otherwise not be able to get online.

Once installed, the apps download the Coinhive JavaScript library and start mining cryptocurrencies. The apps run in a hidden browser window making it difficult for the user to know they are there. However, they do cause very high CPU utilisation. On most devices this will manifest itself as the device getting warm or even hot when held.

The second mining app, ANDROIDOS_CPUMINER turns any app into a trojan. Apps are modified and then repackaged. When a user downloads the app, often from an unofficial app store or from illegal software site, they will be quickly infected. TrendLabs discovered one such app was the Car Wallpaper HD: Mercedes, Ferrari, BMW and Audi.

TrendLabs says that it detected a total of 25 instances of ANDROIDOS_CPUMINER in addition to the ANDROIDOS_JSMINER infected apps.

What does this mean?

The explosion in cryptocurrencies and the need to mine them early to make a serious profit is driving these attacks. It is highly unlikely that we will see any let up in the number of attacks over the next year or even longer. Criminals are also getting smarter and looking for new ways to infect machines.

The big question here is what value is realistically being gained from using mobile devices? While they are getting more powerful the problems that need to be solved are also getting harder. This means that the return on investment for the hackers is questionable. Of course, it could be that once they realise this they will change their approach and use infected devices for other purposes.

In the blog post the authors state: “These threats highlight how even mobile devices can be used for cryptocurrency mining activities, even if, in practice, the effort results in an insignificant amount of profit. Users should take note of any performance degradation on their devices after installing an app.“

Is Coin Miner draining your Android device? was last modified: October 31st, 2017 by Ian Murphy

via enterprisetimes.co.uk

Meteor Not Only Tells You Internet Speeds, but What You Can Do With Them, Too

There are literally dozens of speed test utilities for the iPhone. All of them do one basic thing — tell you how fast your upload and download speeds are. The question is, what do those numbers mean in practical terms? Meteor is a new breed of speed test that tells you how well common apps will perform, given your internet speeds.

Meteor is a simple-to-use app with plenty of power. It conducts a test of your Internet upload and download speeds, and presents that information in Mb/s, just like any other speed test app.

Your test results presented to you as "Awesome," "Very Good," "OK," and "Poor." This is probably information you already know, but Meteor will give you the numbers you need to present to your internet service provider for help.

From the Dashboard, you can see how many tests you've run and what locations those have been from. For example, if you test from your home Wi-Fi and then again using your LTE connection, those could show as different locations.

Depending on how good your GPS signal is when you run a speed test, I've found that even my home Wi-Fi can generate different locations.

Finally, the history tab shows you all of the tests you've run. You can filter by today, the previous week, or the previous month.

If you want to know what you can do with your poor Internet speeds, this is the app that tells you

What makes Meteor different, though, is that the app actually translates those numbers into something useful. You can see how various apps will perform, given your current internet speeds.

That way, you can try to figure out what apps you can actually run, and when you're having problems because of the game itself or your device, rather than your network.

If an app needs faster bandwidth than your network will provide, you'll see the result labeled as "OK" or "Poor." Those labels mean the app will either run with some problems, or it will experience major problems when you try to use or play it.

Currently, Meteor supports 25 apps, including Facebook, Instagram, Clash Royale, Youtube, Pokémon Go, and more. If you don't find your app listed, you can easily request it.

The Meteor Monster

The meteor Monster will help you understand your speed test results. Don't worry, he's easy to disable from the settings of the app.

See how your apps will perform

Along with the usual numbers showing your internet speeds, Meteor also provides information about how you can expect your apps to run.

A simple-to-use speed test

Meteor provides an easy way to run a speed test on your network.

FREE

Meteor: App Speed Tester

OpenSignal, Inc

via appadvice