Software used to detect (as of this writeup)
802.11b and
802.11a wireless networks. It is mostly used under
Linux but can also be used on
PowerPC, and
ARM (think
iPaq and
Zaurus) architectures. Its features include (from www.kismetwireless.net)
- Multiple packet sources
- Channel hopping
- IP block detection
- Cisco product detection via CDP
- Ethereal/tcpdump compatable file logging
- Airsnort-compatable "interesting"
(cryptographically weak) logging
- Hidden SSID decloaking
- Grouping and custom naming of SSIDs
- Multiple clients viewing a single capture stream
- Graphical mapping of data (gpsmap)
- Cross-platform support (handheld Linux and BSD)
- Manufacturer identification
- Detection of default access point configurations
- Detection of Netstumbler clients
- Runtime decoding of WEP packets
- Multiplexing of multiple capture sources
Other features that I enjoy are
- It's entirely text based, using ncurses
- Passive searching. This is good for two reasons.
- Allows for detection of cloaked networks
- No one can tell that you're searching for networks (unlike Netstumbler which is noisy as hell)
There are a whole range of other fine features, however there are too many to list here, and they're always changing. All in all it's a great utility for managing, or molesting wireless networks. And it's IMHO the best utility for
wardriving