In order to provide more accurate information about the WiFi networks available on campus, I recently interviewed Phil Mikulak, the director of the campus IT's telecommunications and networking group. Below is the summary of our conversation.
Kirby: What is the exact number of WiFi networks an IU South Bend member can access?
Phil: There are four WiFi networks available on this campus: IU Secure, eduroam, attwifi and DeviceNet. The last is only available in the student apartment area across the St. Joseph River. Each wireless network serves its own purpose and has its unique features. If you are an IU community member, IU Secure should be the first choice for your mobile device because it provides WiFi WPA2 (WiFi Protected Access) for authentication and encryption. In addition, it allows you to utilize some IU resources, such as IUanyWare. However, before you can surf the Internet, you need to register your device's MAC address. For a windows-based laptop or tablet, you can register via Get Connected. For devices of other platforms (iOS, Linux, Android), the easy way is to register at the IU DHCP site.
Kirby: Would you please further explain how IU Secure works to protect our data?
Phil: Say you intend to use your smart phone for online shopping. IU Secure first encrypts your user ID and password, sending secured authentication data from your device to an IUSB access point nearby. There, your device will be connected to the IU network linked by cables and protected by the university firewalls. As a decent online shopping site is normally secured by the company (often starting with "https://" in the URL), your personal confidential information should be protected through the whole transferring process.
Kirby: Not many people know the wireless network eduroam. Could you introduce our users to it?
Phil: eduroam is a secured, worldwide wireless network. The system allows faculty and students to access the Internet using their home university credentials while visiting other participating institutions. It is a convenient network to use, as it does not require registering your device's MAC address. However if you want to access the remote protected IU network resources, for instance, your department's H drive or your personal O drive, you need to further configure and establish a secured VPN connection.
Kirby: What are the differences between eduroam and attwifi?
Phil: attwifi is mainly there to provide courtesy access for IU visitors; however, you need to know, it is not secured. The service is free for AT&T users as well as the non-AT&T users. After "signing" a company's disclaimer statement shown on your browser, you will be connected with the Internet; no typing in your user ID and password.
Kirby: I heard DeviceNet is not a proper wireless network for desktop and laptop computers.
Phil: That's true. To enrich student residents' after-class life, we made it available in the student apartments across the river. DeviceNet is meant to be used with gaming devices and media players such as Xboxes, Playstations, Wii and Wii U systems. You can also use it for some Apple products and services, for example, Apple TVs and Bonjour Services. These are devices that do not support encryption, such as WPA2. DeviceNet is an unencrypted network. Without encryption, any personal data transmitted between your devices and the access point can be risky. So it's better not to use it for online shopping. I strongly recommend you use IU Secure instead. You don't need your network ID and password to connect to the network, but you must register your device's MAC address* in order to use DeviceNet. If the device does not support a browser, you can contact the IU South Bend Support Center and they can facilitate registering your device.
Kirby: I really appreciate your spending time talking about the wireless network around us.
Phil: My pleasure.
*A MAC (Media Access Control) address is a number that identifies the network adapter(s) installed on a computer or a network device, also known as physical address or hardware address. In Apple's OS X system, a device's wireless MAC address is called "Airport ID."