KRACK puts the security of WPA2 Wi-Fi networks at risk

Protecting our Wifi signal has become a priority for many users for some time now, not only because we want to share our connection with anyone, but we also prevent them from accessing the data that we have stored on our computer. For some time, WPA2 security, with its different variants, has become the most widely used, leaving behind the WEP-type connections that did not offer the same encryption and security as WP2 and that also eThey are susceptible to password cracking attacks. But according to a security expert, WPA2 networks have a vulnerability that allows access to devices that are not protected against it, which are absolutely all those available on the market.

This vulnerability affects everything from smartphones, to smart TVs, routers, modems, Blu-Ray devices… any device that connects to the internet and uses the WP2 security protocol, a protocol that had demonstrated practically insurmountable security. The problem that arises now is that to solve this vulnerability, it is necessary for the manufacturer to release an update to solve, an update that some companies such as Apple or Microsoft have already begun to send. protecting from this vulnerability all devices running your operating system.

KRACK is a small application that manages to sneak into the communication between the devices when they try to link and thus be able to decipher the password used. With the following example you may see it more clearly. When we get to our house, our smartphone searches for the known Wi-Fi network to connect, in the process, this application can sneak into their communication and access the stored data on our device. But if only one of the devices is up-to-date and protected against this vulnerability, the process becomes impossible as before.

Most likely, our router will never receive a security update from the manufacturer, so at least we must make sure that our device, be it smartphone, tablet, computer ... if it is, so that in this way all information on our devices remains protected as up to the moment in which this vulnerability has been detected.

According to Apple, this vulnerability was fixed in the last betas that it released for iOS 11. However, Android users are once again the most affected, especially those whose version is Marshmallow or higher. Google claims that it has already got to work to launch a security patch, but as usual in the Android ecosystem very unlikely to reach all devicesSince few manufacturers bother to release security patches for older devices.