Microsoft pushing for more secure Wi-Fi networks

May 23, 2019 12:37 GMT  ·  By

The debut of Windows 10 May 2019 Update also brings new information regarding the features that Microsoft plans to remove or abandon the development of in the coming months.
 

Among them there’s a change that could cause a lot of frustration in the Windows user community.

Microsoft says it’s pulling support for Wi-Fi networks secured with WEP or TKIP, essentially trying to force the use of more secure networks that rely on more advanced protection levels like WPA2 or WPA3.

WHY?

The answer to this question is as simple as it could be: both WPA2 and WPA3 are more secure than the old WEP security level, with the latter announced in January 2018. For comparison, WEP officially became a Wi-Fi security standard in 1999, so this year it turns 20.

From the official website of Wi-Fi Alliance:

“Since Wi-Fi networks differ in usage purpose and security needs, WPA3 includes additional capabilities specifically for personal and enterprise networks. Users of WPA3-Personal receive increased protections from password guessing attempts, while WPA3-Enterprise users can now take advantage of higher grade security protocols for sensitive data networks.”

So the bottom line here is that Microsoft wants to encourage the transition to more secure Wi-Fi protections, and giving up on older tech is pretty much the only way to do it.

WHEN?

This is a question that’s yet to be answered, but Microsoft only says support for WEP would be pulled “in a future release.” Most likely, the next Windows 10 feature update would make the change, albeit once again, this is just a guess and not something confirmed by Microsoft.

The next Windows 10 update is due in the fall – as per Microsoft’s schedule, it should be finalized in September and then released to production devices in October or November.

Most likely, such changes would first be tested with help from users enrolled in the Windows Insider program. A warning, however, will become available in Windows 10 May 2019 Update.

HOW?

This is actually the tricky part because Microsoft absolutely needs to make the transition as smooth as possible.

The first thing you should know is that once Windows 10 pulls support for WEP, you will no longer be able to connect to Wi-Fi networks using this security level.

“In a future release, any connection to a Wi-Fi network using these old ciphers will be disallowed,” Microsoft says.

Because it needs to make sure everyone is aware of the change, Microsoft will begin displaying a warning to users that WEP is going away starting with the Windows 10 May 2019 Update (which is currently rolling out to devices worldwide).

“In this release a warning message will appear when connecting to Wi-Fi networks secured with WEP or TKIP, which are not as secure as those using WPA2 or WPA3,” the company notes.

So what should you do, not only to be able to connect to wireless networks, but also to keep your network up and running for your devices?

The only way to go is to switch to WPA2 or WPA3, which Windows 10 will continue to support going forward.

“Wi-Fi routers should be updated to use AES ciphers, available with WPA2 or WPA3,” Microsoft briefly explains.

WEP has long been considered an insecure standard, so it’s definitely a good thing that Microsoft is forcing the transition to WPA2 and WPA3. However, what the software giant needs to make sure of is that this change happens as smoothly as possible, because otherwise, failing to connect to an unsupported Wi-Fi network can eventually backfire, with frustrated users blaming Windows, and not the updated security policies.