What is WPA3?
Updated over a week ago

Released in 2018, WPA3 is the latest security upgrade from the Wi-Fi Alliance since 2004. The upgrade brings greater password protection, individualized encryption for personal networks, and greater security for business networks.

Specifically, WPA3 addresses one of the biggest vulnerabilities of WPA2, which was the brute-force or "dictionary" attack, which involved guessing a password over and over again until it is cracked. Even if users create weak passwords, WPA3 uses Simultaneous Authentication of Equals (SAE) to create a stronger mutual password for the two connected parties that is more resistant to these attacks.

WPA3 also uses 128-bit encryption for personal networks and 192-bit encryption for enterprise networks, replacing the previous WPA2 64-bit and 128-bit standards.

Further, WPA3 encrypts communications over a Wi-Fi network even if it is not password protected. Even if data is captured, it can't be decrypted.

Lastly, WPA3 makes it easier to connect IoT devices securely to networks. Many smart devices do not have visual interfaces for setup, so a security-enhanced QR code is used instead.

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