Wireless Networking at Barnard
Disadvantages of Wireless:
- The connection speeds are slower and dependent
upon the connection strength and how many users are accessing
the wireless network at a given time.
- Network Interference:
The following will interfere with the wireless network. These devices must be cleared with AT
before they are permitted to be used on campus:
- 2.4 GHz cordless phones
- Wireless Ethernet Access Points including the Apple Airport
Base Station and the Macintosh computer operating as a software
base station.
- 2.4 GHz consumer short distance wireless video links
- Any computer operating in IEEE 802.11b Ad-Hoc mode
- Some scientific equipment
- Radio transmitters
- Security
The Barnard and Columbia Wireless Networks are not secure at
this time. Anyone can read unencrypted information that
is sent out from your computer, although this is a
rather unlikely scenario. Still, to avoid unwanted parties gaining
access to your information the following precautions are recommended.
- Do not place credit card orders or use passwords for email
accounts. (Check settings for Outlook Express and other email
clients to see if they will automatically log in once
connected through wireless.) This same rule applies for AIM
conversations.
- Only check your Barnard/Columbia email accounts through
SSH
instead of telnet. Use Kerberos authentication or SSL
to connect to web pages/mail hosts.