SecurityĪnother difference between WEP Open and WEP Shared is security. WEP Open does not perform the actual authentication while WEP Shared performs the actual authentication (a process consisting of four steps). Thus, this is the main difference between WEP Open and WEP Shared. WEP Open is an authentication type in WEP that does not need to provide credentials to the Access Point during the authentication while WEP Shared is an authentication type in WEP that requires four step challenge-response handshake to accomplish authentication.
Difference Between WEP Open and WEP Shared Definition Therefore, it is easier to decrypt in WEP shared than in WEP open. In shared authentication, it is possible to find the keystream using the challenge frames. Here, the RC4 is a stream cipher.Įven though we feel that the shared authentication is more secure, it is not so. The pre-shared WEP key helps to encrypt the data frames using RC4. If the message is similar to the challenge text, the Access Point sends a positive reply. Finally, the Access Point decrypts the response. Then it sends another authentication request. Next, the client encrypts the challenge text using the configured WEP key. Then, the Access point responds back with a clear text challenge. First, the client sends an authentication request to the Access Point. WEP shared authentication consist of four main steps. On the other hand, in this authentication, any WLAN client can connect to the Access Point. Usually, it is suitable to use WEP open when privacy is the main concern. At this point, the client should have correct keys. It is also possible to use WEP keys to encrypt the data frames. Therefore, any client can authenticate with the access point. In WEP Open authentication, the WLAN client does not need to provide the credentials to the Access point while authenticating. – Comparison of Key Differences Key TermsĪuthentication, Encryption, WEP Open, WEP Shared, WPA What is the Difference Between WEP Open and WEP Shared The newest protocol is Wi-Fi Processed Access (WPA). When considering overall security, WEP is not very effective. There are two authentications in WEP called open authentication and shared key authentication. WEP, which stands for Wireless Equivalent Privacy, is a protocol to secure wireless networks. The main difference between WEP Open and WEP Shared is that WEP Open automatically authenticates any client without considering whether he has the correct WEP keys while WEP shared performs the actual authentication process.