What is WEP Encryption for Wireless Networks?
Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) is a security protocol for wireless networks that encrypts transmitted data . It’s easy to configure. Without any security your data can be intercepted without difficulty. However, WEP was an early attempt to secure wireless networks, and better security is now available such as DES, VPN, and WPA. WEP has three settings: Off (no security), 64-bit (weak security), 128-bit (a bit better security). WEP is not difficult to crack, and using it reduces performance slightly. If you run a network with only the default security, where WEP is turned off, any of your neighbors can immediately log on to your network and use your Internet connection.
