5 ms·

The SSID is the key. There is no other security as far as I understand it - you can test this by changing routers and naming the SSID and password the same. Dev

The SSID is the key. There is no other security as far as I understand it - you can test this by changing routers and naming the SSID and password the same. Devices will join this new network no questions asked.

astrange 4y ago
That depends on the carrier. There is such a thing as SIM authenticated WiFi networks and they can use it.
Wowfunhappy 4y ago
> There is no other security as far as I understand it - you can test this by changing routers and naming the SSID and password the same. Devices will join this new network no questions asked. AIUI this is a feature, not a bug. It allows devices to switch between different access points automatically. For example, a large school will need to use many different access points in order to cover the entire building. Students will not want to manually switch between all of these access points, so the school gives each one an identical SSID and password. Devices will then switch automatically as needed.
- Riverheart 4y ago
  I read this as cellular providers offloading traffic from their networks by making it so phones will piggyback on Wi-Fi networks. Maybe a symptom of increasing demand for more data but unwillingness to eat the cost or too many users. With Wi-Fi calling they’ve got that covered.
- TylerE 4y ago
  Hardly exotic these days. I have multiple APs at home, all sharing the same ssid with automatic handoff. Practically every ASUS router (at least) can do it, and it's only a few clicks to set up.
  - lxgr 4y ago
    Every 802.12-compliant AP can do it. They can even be of different brands, since it’s just the Wi-Fi equivalent of plugging your computer into a different switch on the same (switched) subnet.
    - TylerE 4y ago
      The Asus stuff is bit fancier than that, and will do stuff like optimize which AP each device connects to via signal strenth. It's true mesh networking.
      - lxgr 4y ago
        > optimize which AP each device connects to via signal strenth That's how most 802.11 STAs (clients) make a standalone roaming/handoff decision. But if the vendor supports it (and the APs can cooperate towards providing it, such as yours, probably), there's also 802.11v, which allows the APs/network to make the roaming decision based on their respective load, view of the client's signal strength (and not only the client's view of theirs) etc. It's nothing unique to Asus, though. > It's true mesh networking. Mesh networking is something else yet, as it concerns how the backing network of the APs is created and managed. You can have 802.11v with Ethernet-connected APs, or plain client-side roaming with meshed APs.
robocat 4y ago
> There is no other security as far as I understand it https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35447903 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35447903 says it uses RADIUS authentication and “I can't just stand up [spoof] the ‘t-mobile’ or ‘Passpoint Secure’ SSID”.
blincoln 4y ago
That is how pre-shared key (PSK) WiFi works, but it's not how WiFi that uses strong authentication (e.g. WPA2 Enterprise) works. There may be bugs/vulnerabilities in the stronger authentication, of course. Using PSK for untrusted clients is a bad practice, because everyone who knows the PSK can decrypt all of the wireless traffic even without setting up a malicious AP with the same SSID. If a phone carrier were forcing devices onto PSK networks, it would be an even bigger problem than the one discussed here.

astrange 4y ago

That depends on the carrier. There is such a thing as SIM authenticated WiFi networks and they can use it.

Wowfunhappy 4y ago

> There is no other security as far as I understand it - you can test this by changing routers and naming the SSID and password the same. Devices will join this new network no questions asked. AIUI this is a feature, not a bug. It allows devices to switch between different access points automatically. For example, a large school will need to use many different access points in order to cover the entire building. Students will not want to manually switch between all of these access points, so the school gives each one an identical SSID and password. Devices will then switch automatically as needed.

Riverheart 4y ago
I read this as cellular providers offloading traffic from their networks by making it so phones will piggyback on Wi-Fi networks. Maybe a symptom of increasing demand for more data but unwillingness to eat the cost or too many users. With Wi-Fi calling they’ve got that covered.
TylerE 4y ago
Hardly exotic these days. I have multiple APs at home, all sharing the same ssid with automatic handoff. Practically every ASUS router (at least) can do it, and it's only a few clicks to set up.
- lxgr 4y ago
  Every 802.12-compliant AP can do it. They can even be of different brands, since it’s just the Wi-Fi equivalent of plugging your computer into a different switch on the same (switched) subnet.
  - TylerE 4y ago
    The Asus stuff is bit fancier than that, and will do stuff like optimize which AP each device connects to via signal strenth. It's true mesh networking.
    - lxgr 4y ago
      > optimize which AP each device connects to via signal strenth That's how most 802.11 STAs (clients) make a standalone roaming/handoff decision. But if the vendor supports it (and the APs can cooperate towards providing it, such as yours, probably), there's also 802.11v, which allows the APs/network to make the roaming decision based on their respective load, view of the client's signal strength (and not only the client's view of theirs) etc. It's nothing unique to Asus, though. > It's true mesh networking. Mesh networking is something else yet, as it concerns how the backing network of the APs is created and managed. You can have 802.11v with Ethernet-connected APs, or plain client-side roaming with meshed APs.

robocat 4y ago

> There is no other security as far as I understand it https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35447903 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35447903 says it uses RADIUS authentication and “I can't just stand up [spoof] the ‘t-mobile’ or ‘Passpoint Secure’ SSID”.

blincoln 4y ago

That is how pre-shared key (PSK) WiFi works, but it's not how WiFi that uses strong authentication (e.g. WPA2 Enterprise) works. There may be bugs/vulnerabilities in the stronger authentication, of course. Using PSK for untrusted clients is a bad practice, because everyone who knows the PSK can decrypt all of the wireless traffic even without setting up a malicious AP with the same SSID. If a phone carrier were forcing devices onto PSK networks, it would be an even bigger problem than the one discussed here.