wireless network connections in range report

[vhelp]

hi all. i'm looking for a way to keep track of wifi networks within range to me. but i want to do this through code because i want to create a custom activity report, plus i want to see if its possible to determine if unusual activity is taking place.

i've seen in my xp's wireless connection window an entry for computer-to-computer with no security associated and that makes me wonder if i should worry or not. anyway.

i'm using delphi to figure all this out and so far after many months of searching i have not found working example code other then wmi code which is very complicated to get working. all my attempts seem to fail to produce a listing similar to what xp wireless nework connection list provides.

looking to do something like this but i will make customizations once i get it working.

thanks in advance.

[yoda313]

Wouldn't your router and or antivirus program have some of the functionality you are looking for? I'm not sure what abilties routers have to track incoming connections but I would assume there is something there.

I have norton 360 and it has activity reports of threats and things like that. I'm not sure if that is what you are looking to get but I would look into security programs like that.

As far as wifi networks in your area what about that thing called war-driving if I remember right? Not sure what it is exactly but isn't that when people try to locate unprotected networks to connect freely albeit probably illegal in most areas? There might be a legal way to map who is wireless in your area to watch out for intruders?

Other than that all I could say is keep your antivirus current and change your wep password every now and then. Something I should do.

Also check norton and other major companies to see if they have wireless security programs designed to do exactly what you want already. I'm sure there are limited versions of what you want already available. They may do everything you want but I don't know as I haven't looked myself.

Hope this gets you going in the right direction.

[redwudz]

I think you would have to write a custom program for what you want to do, not so easy. I have used this freeware program for a while to check the networks near me. http://www.metageek.net/products/inssider/ They also have other payware programs/devices if you need more info.

I can pick up about 20 close networks around me, 3 of them open with no encryption. And I'm in a semi-rural area. In a large city, there could be hundreds available, and a lot more hackers around and about.

But if you're worried about hackers, better to just secure your network with strong encryption. I use WPA2 Personal with AES encryption. You can also use MAC filtering so only your computers can receive the WiFi signals and you can also turn off your routers SSID so it won't show up on other computers. Determined hackers can bypass the last two options, but the AES encryption is very secure if you use a strong password.

[vhelp]

i live in a community area apt setup..and see as many as 15 wifi networks near me, though 5 to 8 is the daily routine. the rare drive-by's i see i what i want to capture for review activity, especially when its a computer-to-computer with no encryp lock on that end.

redwudz, thats exactly what i am trying to do--write a custom utility/report so i'm not limited by its features. i just want a similar output xp offers--the demo photo in my first post. yes, i found lots of resources (codes snippets) but like you said, they are not easy to get working.

and, i do have virus/firewall software on my computer, and daily updated..thanks guys.

update--found something that seems to work, finally. i just need to work out some bugs....

[vhelp]

i found a solution that works. much quicker than xp's version, and i'm already making enhancesments. i'll post a screeen shot when i think its finshed enough.