Systems and Means of Informatics

2014, Volume 24, Issue 3, pp 32-43

COVERT CHANNELS ON THE WIRELESS NETWORKS OF THE STANDARD 802.11

N. A. Grusho

Abstract

The paper studies the possibility of building a covert channel using the header of the 802.11 standard frame and some features of functioning of wireless networks based on these standards. To construct a covert channel, the principles of a wireless network, the connection and disconnection processes of wireless clients, and the structure of the network frame have to be described. To confirm the possibility of using the header of the network frame and the mechanism of deauthentification of a wireless client for covert communication, the paper describes the layout, which includes the necessary hardware and software, and experiments. The experimental results confirm the possibility of building covert channels in 802.11 wireless networks. Authors propose a way of using covert channels described in the article as well as the methods of eliminating them.

[+] References (14)

Grusho, A. 1998. Hidden channels and information security in computer systems. Discrete Math. Appl. 8(2): 127-133.
Grusho, A. 1999. On the existence of hidden channels. Discrete Math. Appl. 9(1): 1-5.
Grusho, A. A., and E. E. Timonina. 2003. Yazyki v skrytykh kanalakh [Languages in the covert channels]. Tr. Mezhdunar. Konf. "Informatsionnye Tekhnologii v Nauke, Obrazovanii, Telekommunikatsii, Biznese (vesennyaya sessiya)" [Conference (International) "Information Technologies in Science, Education, Telecommunications, Business (Spring Session)" Transactions]. Zaporozh'e: Laboratory of Publishing Technologies and Computer Graphics, Zaporozh'e State University. 181-184.
Grusho, A. A., and E. E. Timonina. 2003. Preodolenie zashchity ot skrytykh kanalov [Overcoming of protection against the covert channels]. Obozrenie prikladnoy promysh- lennoy matematiki [Review of Applied Industrial Mathematics] 10(3):638-639.
Grusho, A., A. Kniazev, andE. Timonina. 2005. Detection of illegal information flow. Computer network security. Eds. V. Gorodetsky, I. V. Kotenko, and V. A. Skormin. Lecture notes in computer science ser. 3685:235-244.
Grusho, N. 2013. Skrytye kanaly, osnovannye na metkakh [Covert channels generated by tags]. Sistemy i Sredstva Informatiki - Systems and Means of Informatics 23(1): 7-13.
Grusho, A., N. Grusho, and E. Timonina. 2013. Skrytye kanaly, porozhdennye metkami, v deytagrammakh [Covert channels generated by tags in datagrams]. Sistemy i Sredstva Informatiki - Systems and Means of Informatics 23(2):3-18.
IEEE Standard for Information Technology. Telecommunications and information exchange between systems .Local and metropolitan area networks. Specific requirements Part 11: Wireless LAN Medium Access Control (MAC) and Physical Layer (PHY) Specifications.
Frikha, L., and Z. Trabelsi. 2008. A new covert channel in WiFi networks. Risk and Security of Internet and Systems (CRiSIS'08): 3rd Conference (International) Proceedings. IEEE. Available at: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/ articleDetails.jsp?arnumber=4757487 (accessed August 1, 2014).
Calhoun, Jr., T. E., X. Cao, Y. Li, and R. Beyah. 2010. An 802.11 MAC layer covert channel. Wireless communications and mobile computing. John Wiley & Sons. Available at: http://www.cs.gsu.edu/yli/papers/WCMC10.pdf (accessed August 1, 2014).
Grusho, A. A.,N. A. Grusho, andE.E. Timonina. 2009. Metody zashchity informatsii ot atak s pomoshch'yu skrytykh kanalov i vrazhdebnykh programmno-apparatnykh agentov v raspredelennykh sistemakh. [Information security methods from attacks by means of the covert channels and hostile hardware-software agents in distributed systems]. Vestnik RGGU. Ser. "Informatika. Zashchita informatsii. Matematikd' [RGGU Bulletin. Informatics. Information security. Mathematician ser.] 10:33-45.
Wireless LAN. Data Network Resourse. Available at: http://www.rhyshaden.com/ wireless.htm (accessed August 1, 2014).
Microsoft. 2014. Data flow in the OSI model. Available at: http://technet. microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc977591.aspx (accessed August 1, 2014).
Tamosoft. Available at: http://www.tamos.ru/products/commview/ (accessed October 2, 2014).

[+] About this article