WEP represents the encryption of communications data sent over radio waves, specifically using an 802.11b system. But WEP, offered with varying amounts of encryption, is vulnerable because a smart attacker can obtain data pertinent to circumventing the coding by capturing sufficient frames of data.
WEP begins doing its job when a wireless computer sends a request to an access point for a secure session. The access point generates an encrypted response, or shell, that is sent back to the computer. The computer then creates a special code, or shared key, for the computer and the access point. The access point decrypts the shell and allows the computer entry to a network if the shared key matches.
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