In Numeris Veritas: An Empirical Measurement of Wi-Fi Integration in Industry

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Main Authors: Kampourakis, Vyron, Smiliotopoulos, Christos, Gkioulos, Vasileios, Katsikas, Sokratis
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Kampourakis, Vyron
Smiliotopoulos, Christos
Gkioulos, Vasileios
Katsikas, Sokratis
author_facet Kampourakis, Vyron
Smiliotopoulos, Christos
Gkioulos, Vasileios
Katsikas, Sokratis
contents Traditional air gaps in industrial systems are disappearing as IT technologies permeate the OT domain, accelerating the integration of wireless solutions like Wi-Fi. Next-generation Wi-Fi standards (IEEE 802.11ax/be) meet performance demands for industrial use cases, yet their introduction raises significant security concerns. A critical knowledge gap exists regarding the empirical prevalence and security configuration of Wi-Fi in real-world industrial settings. This work addresses this by mining the global crowdsourced WiGLE database to provide a data-driven understanding. We create the first publicly available dataset of 1,087 high-confidence industrial Wi-Fi networks, examining key attributes such as SSID patterns, encryption methods, vendor types, and global distribution. Our findings reveal a growing adoption of Wi-Fi across industrial sectors but underscore alarming security deficiencies, including the continued use of weak or outdated security configurations that directly expose critical infrastructure. This research serves as a pivotal reference point, offering both a unique dataset and practical insights to guide future investigations into wireless security within industrial environments.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2509_16987
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle In Numeris Veritas: An Empirical Measurement of Wi-Fi Integration in Industry
Kampourakis, Vyron
Smiliotopoulos, Christos
Gkioulos, Vasileios
Katsikas, Sokratis
Cryptography and Security
Traditional air gaps in industrial systems are disappearing as IT technologies permeate the OT domain, accelerating the integration of wireless solutions like Wi-Fi. Next-generation Wi-Fi standards (IEEE 802.11ax/be) meet performance demands for industrial use cases, yet their introduction raises significant security concerns. A critical knowledge gap exists regarding the empirical prevalence and security configuration of Wi-Fi in real-world industrial settings. This work addresses this by mining the global crowdsourced WiGLE database to provide a data-driven understanding. We create the first publicly available dataset of 1,087 high-confidence industrial Wi-Fi networks, examining key attributes such as SSID patterns, encryption methods, vendor types, and global distribution. Our findings reveal a growing adoption of Wi-Fi across industrial sectors but underscore alarming security deficiencies, including the continued use of weak or outdated security configurations that directly expose critical infrastructure. This research serves as a pivotal reference point, offering both a unique dataset and practical insights to guide future investigations into wireless security within industrial environments.
title In Numeris Veritas: An Empirical Measurement of Wi-Fi Integration in Industry
topic Cryptography and Security
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.16987