#software-project

Wigle.net is a website where individuals have collected wifi information from their surroundings and uploaded it to a public database. Here, we can provide SSID’s or BSSID’s and in return (potentially) we can get geo-location information:

So for example, if I enter the SSID “uniwide”, we get the following map:

So, if we’re able to collect people SSID’s, we’re able to build a profile of said individual, potentially of where they live/work/study - all thanks to their digital footprint.

UPDATE:

As pointed out by a fellow student, there was a collection of spots that match the location of UNSW student off-campus living - emphasising the power of this tool.

When purchasing a wifi adapter, there are couple things you need to know:

The Wifi-card Seller

This is the company that actually sells you the card - they are responsible for the physical layout and design of the adapter.

Eg. TP-Link, Alfa

The Chip Maker

This is the company that actually makes the card and thereby, controls its behaviour

Therefore, it is more important to consider the Chip Maker than the Wifi-card Seller

Eg. Ralink

Does your Adapter support 2.4GHz and 5GHz wifi frequencies?

In other words, is it dual-band?

If it doesn’t support one of the frequencies, you won’t be able to receive any packets on said frequency

Both frequencies are in popular use with 5GHz having higher data rates, but lower range (put simply)

Does your Adapter support monitor/packet injecting?

These features are not available to all wifi cards and depend on the wifi chip - check the specs to see if they are

Does your Adapter’s driver support your intended OS?

To use your I/O device, you’ll need to install a driver on your machine - drivers versions depend on the OS and hence, not all adapters support all OS’s (eg. supporting Linux is the rarest)

Research online reviews before you buy