How data security and user privacy protection in WiFi network billing systems are located at the design stage of the system

The most valuable thing about WiFi’s network billing system is not the code itself, not the server configuration, or even commercial authorization, but the user data and personal information. When doing security assessments for a company operating in public WiFi this year, it was found that all users had their phone numbers, access records, payment records on backstage, and that the password to manage the back-office login was admin/admin123 by default. I asked them to change the password as quickly as possible, and he said something that reminded me so far:"We're all right with them anyway."

WiFi network billing systems have multiple links to be encrypted at the data transfer level. First, Portal authentication pages——If the user sees the authentication page after connecting WiFi and is moving instead of HTTPS, the cell phone number and identification code entered by the user are explicit during transmission and any equipment within the same local area network may be intercepted.

Many people find it too difficult to get Portal to use HTTPS because of the SSL deployment, the re-direction of HTPS and the various browsers. But these are not technical barriers, and the market-developed WiFi network billing system supports Portal's HTTPS deployment."HTTP's good enough. It's not safe."You should be on your guard.

Second, payback interface.——The earlier statement said that you must check with HTTPS. And run the backstage.——As long as the backstage is managed by HTTP, login documents are transmitted explicitly on the network and any device in the same section is captured with Wiresark as a user name and password.

The WiFi web-based billing system contains a large amount of sensitive information: the user’s cell phone number, identification card number (if an authentic name is involved), equipment MAC address, online recording, and payment information.

The usual practice in the industry is to store cell phones under AES encryption and a card number after Hashika salt (except for public security audits, etc.), where it is explicitly required to keep an explicit scene).——You should stay. You shouldn't stay."Maybe it'll be useful."And I kept all the logs indefinitely.

If the system contains a complete bank card or third-party payment account, PCI-DSS or other compliance requirements of 2.0 are involved, with a clear set of criteria for assessing the security protection capabilities of the system. Generally speaking, WiFi’s network billing system should only store the transaction number of the pay platform and not any payment sensitive information.

The management backstage of WiFi’s network billing system is the weakest link in security. Many systems are managed on a log-in page, and all functions are open to use when they go in, without an operating log, no access classification, and no unusual behavior alerts. This means that anyone with access rights to the back-office can export all user data quietly, without any record being recorded.

A qualified security design should include: managing backstage forced HTTPS, log-in enabler double factor authentication or multiIP restrictions, all user data export operations must leave audit logs (who exported which data at what time) and trigger alarms when back-office IP anomalies occur. These requirements are now not high matchted but base safety baselines. Data security is not an additional optional function in WiFi network billing systems, but it should be built into the underlying competencies from the first day of system design. You have a duty to protect users by handing them over to you. This is not a big deal, but a real legal responsibility and business reputation. A data leak could cause an operation that has been going on for years to lose all users ' trust. Security input is insurance, not something that you think about after something's happened. At the operational level, it is recommended that at least one penetration test and security assessment be performed by third parties before the system is online, focusing on transmission encryption of Portal pages, sensitive information storage in databases, backstage authentication mechanisms and the API interface logic. These checks do not cost much, but they help you to discover security gaps that are not visible when self-censorship takes place.——The WiFi web-based billing system logs contain a lot of sensitive information. Radius logs may contain user MAC addresses and IP addresses, and Web server logs may contain full URL parameters for authentication pages."Log"The security system at the management level is equally important, in addition to technical security measures. Who has the authority to export user data, what approval process is required for exporting data, when the outgoing staff member ' s back-office account number is cancelled and how will it be controlled when the third-party manufacturer remotely checkes the issue?——These appear to be administrative processes, but each omission may lead to serious data security incidents.