Wi-Fi CERTIFIED(TM) Expanded to Support EAP-AKA and EAP-FAST Authentication Mechanisms

Wi-Fi CERTIFIED(TM) Expanded to Support EAP-AKA and EAP-FAST Authentication
Mechanisms

With Wi-Fi(R) at the core of the enterprise network, Wi-Fi CERTIFIED security
keeps pace with evolving network landscape

AUSTIN, Texas, May 19 /PRNewswire/ -- The Wi-Fi Alliance(R) has updated its
certification program expanding its Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA2(R))
Enterprise security protocol support. The program update increases the number
of extensible authentication protocol methods (EAP types) supported in
certification testing from five to seven. This expansion ensures that Wi-Fi
CERTIFIED will continue to provide an important validation point for
enterprise IT managers evaluating Wi-Fi products. Two widely-deployed EAP
types, EAP-FAST and EAP-AKA, have been added to the WPA2-Enterprise program.
Additional programs serving the enterprise market are planned in the coming 24
months.

"Wi-Fi technology is at the core of most enterprise networks, serving a wide
and growing array of devices and applications," said Edgar Figueroa, executive
director of the Wi-Fi Alliance. "The updates to WPA2-Enterprise expand the
scope of interoperability testing and help ensure Wi-Fi CERTIFIED solutions
work in a wide variety of network environments."

"Wi-Fi has become a mission-critical technology in enterprise environments, in
large part because of the important assurances provided by Wi-Fi CERTIFIED
testing," said Craig J. Mathias, a principal at the mobile and wireless
advisory firm Farpoint Group. "Wi-Fi Alliance programs are keeping pace with
the demands of the dynamic enterprise networking landscape, and this expansion
of WPA2 reflects that commitment."

Adoption of 3G is increasing worldwide, with ABI Research estimating that 3G
handsets will exceed 50% of all mobile handsets sold in 2009. EAP-AKA
(Authentication and Key Agreement) is a next-generation authentication method
for 3G cellular systems which enables handoff between the cellular and Wi-Fi
network using a single user identifier. EAP-FAST (Flexible Authentication via
Secure Tunneling), uses multiple secured tunnels during authentication. The
other five EAP types included in WPA2 Enterprise testing are: EAP-TLS,
EAP-TTLS/MSCHAPv2, PEAPv0/EAP-MSCHAPv2, PEAPv1/EAP-GTC and EAP-SIM.

As a result of these additions a new authentication server from Open System
Consultants joins Microsoft and Devicescape servers in the certification test
environment. In addition, a new supplicant from the Open1X Project has been
added to the test suite that also includes Microsoft and Cisco clients.

The Wi-Fi Alliance plans additional enterprise certification programs to
launch in the coming 24 months. These include: WMM(R)-Admission Control, for
managed access to network resources; Voice-Enterprise, to test voice
performance of Wi-Fi networks in multiple-access point environments; Wireless
Network Management, for additional management and performance capabilities;
and updates to WPA2 security testing to include management frame protection.
Edgar Figueroa will discuss Wi-Fi Alliance programs for enterprise networking
environments at an Interop panel entitled "The Future of the Wireless LAN" on
May 21 at 10:15 a.m. in the Mandalay Bay Convention Center.

About the Wi-Fi Alliance
The Wi-Fi Alliance is a global non-profit industry association of hundreds of
leading companies devoted to the proliferation of Wi-Fi technology across
devices and market segments. With technology development, market building, and
regulatory programs, the Wi-Fi Alliance has enabled widespread adoption of
Wi-Fi, worldwide.

SOURCE Wi-Fi Alliance

Karl Stetson of Edelman, +1-206-268-2215, karl.stetson@edelman.com, for Wi-Fi
Alliance