A multi-dimensional classification framework for developing context-specific Wireless Local Area Network attack taxonomies

Despite the abundance of taxonomies for the high-level classification of computer or network security attacks, few researchers have worked on the development of a taxonomy dedicated to Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) security attacks. The existing general-purpose taxonomies are not equipped with WLAN-specific classification criteria and, therefore, fail to reveal and categorise attacks that exploit vulnerabilities found only in WLANs. To address this problem, we propose a novel taxonomy development framework that features a rich set of classification criteria devoted to WLAN attacks. The new taxonomy is expressive enough to describe not only well-known attacks, but also newly emerging ones.