WiMAX versus WiFi

In addition to the mentioned issues, WiMAX has many advantages over WiFi which is another wireless access technology. Chief differences are listed as fol-lows:

- Coverage: The WiMAX base station can offer coverage for as many as hundreds of users simultaneously together with administration of the transmission and re-ception of data at very high rates preserving network security whereas WiFi is restricted in terms of offering services and its coverage range is limited (O. Kharif 2003;Free WiMAX info 2012).

- High Speed: The quick connectivity speed over remote distances and offering high speed voice makes it more ideal in all areas including scattered populated and residential zones as well whereas WiFi cannot compete with WiMAX in this respect (T. Willson 2008).

- Multi-functionality: WiMAX carries out a wide range of applications simultane-ously like offering quick speed internet, video streaming, telephone service and voice applications among others.

- Development and potentials: WiMAX has been a remarkable technology count-ed among the next generation networks because it has adequate potential for de-veloping and ability to provide diverse services to users. One is able to establish a connection to Internet anywhere and browse any site and experience online con-ferencing with mobile Internet.

- Keep being in contact with the user: WiMAX network makes it possible to stay in contact with your friends deploying same WiMAX network as a result of the fact that it offers absolute communication service to the end users for seamless communications to be fulfilled.

- Infrastructure: The 802.16 infrastructure is very easy to work with and flexible at the same time thus it offers maximum reliability of network.

- Cheap network: Today WiMAX is a famous wireless network due to offering a low cost network replacement alternative for Internet services provided by local area network or ADSL.

- Rich features: WiMAX is indeed providing rich features that makes it even more demanding and practical. WiMAX comes up with dedicated voice and data channel for fun. Moreover it brings about fast connectively, freedom of move-ment and license spectrum among many others.

- Smart antenna and mesh topology: The smart antenna utilization in 802.16 net-work providing high quality widest array that enables one to make possible com-munication on far routes without any ciphering. It provides 2.3, 2.7, 3.3 and 3.8 GHz frequency ranges. The deployment of mesh topology in 802.16 network for the expansion is an extensive spectrum of antennas for residential and commercial users (Free WiMAX Info 2012).

- Ultra wide band: the unique infrastructure of WiMAX is providing Ultra-Wideband. Its design is offering range from 2 to 10 GHz and with an acceptable time response.

- Homeland security: when it comes to security, WiMAX also provides high secu-rity due to utilization of AES-based encryption systems. Thus one can transmit data throughout the network without having preoccupations (Free WiMAX Info 2012).

Here a brief analysis is carried out on WiMAX and WiFi to justify why WiMAX has been chosen from a security perspective:

1) Authentication: when it comes to authentication in WiMAX, it should be high-lighted that due to using X.509 certificates and the digital signatures, it is indeed reliable. The authentication mechanism defines every user that is striving to enter the cell and also the dynamic keys that alter regularly together with the automatic re-authentication requests in the BS. These certificates cannot not be forged and provide protection against any unauthorized body from entering the WiMAX cell.

Utilizing WEP encryption/authentication technology which deploys static keys has lead into an unfortunate security setback in WiFi, since it has become remark-ably susceptible. Today any network deploying this system is prone to various kinds of cracking attacks. Even though WPA and WPA2 have addressed and set-tled the problems of the WEP mechanism, WiFi equipment should be rather mod-ern to deploy them, thus older network equipment can just rely on WEP.

2) Encryption: it is to be highlighted that WiMAX utilizes basic block ciphers:

AES and DES. It is the the way of selecting, transposition and association of the blocks in a message that determine the complexity of the algorithms. WiMAX deploys CBC (AES), CBC (DES), CCM (AES) and CTR (AES). For these meth-ods, it is not the matter of being superior technologically compared with WiFi’s, but that they are deployed correctly, for instance they utilize dynamic keys that expire after a time to live and are renewed automatically, without repeating

ini-and WPA in WiFi have demonstrated to have security breaches when it comes to encryption, and just in case WPA2 is used then they can offer encryptions as strong as WiMAX.

3) Medium Access: the technology plays an important role and affects the securi-ty to a large extent. WiMAX offers a deterministic Medium Access that is perma-nently supervised by the base station. One can observe that when it comes to WiMAX, no station can send even a single bit if it has not been permitted before by the base station, thus the radio spectrum is supervised automatically and vari-ous types of attacks are prevented. Other wireless access technologies such as WiFi and its MAC layer that is CSMA/CA-based, utilize unsupervised and ran-dom Medium Access that results in a situation that any user floods the air with traffic, when it is not registered in the Access Point (AP). This causes these net-works to be more susceptible to various Denial of Service intrusions.

4) Operator technology: WiMAX was not defined and intended to be used as a LAN technology, it has been invented to be an operator technology for WAN or MAN (Wide-Area, Metropolitan) networks. This means service to multiple inde-pendent users, wide coverage areas … and thus the WiMAX standard developers were alert regarding the security of this technology. WiFi differs a lot as a tech-nology and has been designed for other usages: it is particularly designed for small local networks, so it was “born with lacks” when it comes to security as-pects. WiFi is an affordable and cost-saving technology for the people around the globe. WiFi obviously has several advantages but it introduces some risks too, for instance when the number of users increase, it is normal to expect that more in-truders and hackers will pop-up. If one searches the hacker communities, those who did focus on WiFi networks are a lot and even several programs are written to break into WiFi, whereas WiMAX has proved to be well-armed against exist-ing threats.

5) Additional security not needed: security breaches and lacks when it comes to other technologies may be addressed by deploying extra equipment and servers or high level security protocols: Kerberos, Radius, EAP, PAP(LDAP), … It is clear that these “external” elements undoubtedly boost the security but cause additional costs and need extra equipments. If like WiMAX, many security mechanisms are already integrated into the technology, then it will be more feasabile to use a se-cure network without needing other methods (Security in WiMAX 802.16-2009 network Albentia Systems 2011).