Misc DS Wifi WPA Workarounds?

[Xeijin]

Hi All,

I'm not interested in lowering the security on my router, and I don't really fancy turning my computer on everytime I want to use wifi on the DS, with the official nintendo stick.

Are there any other methods that anyone else knows about, e.g. like setting up a second router or something, would that work?

 

[Nomearod]

That would be really cool but I don't think that's possible.

Why don't you try to use MAC address?

 

[Samutz]

I would imagine plugging a 2nd wireless router into your current router would work. But you would have to configure that 2nd router to deny all connections except for your DS. Otherwise setting up a 2nd router with WEP would be pointless (security-wise) because it still needs to be connected to your internet connection.

 

[Xeijin]

Yes that's what I was thinking too, I mean the main thing is keeping users out of the network shares on the three computers in the house. As long any would be hackers are kept out of the three systems I wouldn't be too worried.

Just had an idea, would a modded xbox be of any use in this situation, I mean it's basically a PC and although I understand the nintendo wifi stick wouldn't work with it per se, is there some sort of access control software in combination with a generic stick available to the Xbox?

 

[Xeijin]

That would be really cool but I don't think that's possible.

Why don't you try to use MAC address?

I've read that restricting connections to certain mac addresses is not much use as it's easy for hackers to spoof an address once they find out what it is, which I've heard is just a case of simple observation.

 

[nothsa]

- WEP protection is a joke. 8 of the 9 access points around my apartment use WEP, and it takes me an average of 5-20 minutes to get their WEP keys.

- Disabling broadcasting of your SSID does nothing if a cracker does a scan of the area (which is the first thing I do when looking for a weak access point). They can still easily see your access point.

- Restricting by MAC address helps, but it's easy for the cracker to spoof a MAC, and it's easy for them to find out what your MAC is if you're transmitting to your access point when they do a scan. They (usually) can't connect with the same MAC as yours when you're connected, but they can wait for you to disconnect or force a disconnection by sending you a de-authorization message.

- WPA/WPA2 protection is MUCH harder to get around, but doesn't work with the DS. Great =/

That said, every layer of security that you add is another annoyance that a cracker has to get through. I've given up on access points and moved to another one 'cause I didn't feel like taking the time to go through a MAC address filter.

Using a second router would work in your case, but then you have a weak link in your security. Someone could then connect to the 2nd router and have a path out to the internet, which is what you're trying to prevent. Also, if the 2nd router's access is not restricted enough, you could be allowing it access to your local network as well.

FYI: My router runs WPA2 with SSID not broadcasting and MAC filtering enabled. Obviously I can't connect my DS through this, so I had to buy the Nintendo Wifi adapter. This seemed like the best option for me as any device has to request authorization before it's allowed to use the Wifi adapted. I've already had multiple Wiis and DSs try to connect through it, and I just deny them access.

 

[nothsa]

Oh, I also sometimes turn the adapter into a "router" (it's called a SoftAP) which allows the adapter to act as a router so that I can use it with homebrew applications. Here's a tutorial that shows you how to do it.

Note that this is insecure (WEP or no encryption), but I usually limit my usage and unplug it when I'm done so that it's only up for a short space of time.