In today's environment, how secure are Versa-Tech's WiFi settings?
We have Wi-Fi connectivity available on all the Versa-Tech products.
In the Versa-Tech LT and the Versa-Tech I, the Wi-Fi connectivity is an external Wi-Fi radio that one can attach to the serial port on the side of the recloser. For those two types, there are two levels of security. There is a password for the wireless LAN (AP) that is transmitting which includes WPA2 security. The second level of security is the password required to make any changes to the settings on the recloser as well as or any other parameter.Now, with the Versa-Tech II and the Versa-Tech XC, there is an internal radio module. With regards to those two models, the security is much enhanced given the hardware changes and improvements that were made in those designs. They is also WPA2 security on the WiFi network. Additionally, there is a username and password login to even form an initial connection with the recloser through the user interface which also includes only the permission level features made available per user type.
Another WiFi security feature added for the Versa-Tech II and the Versa-Tech XC is the ability for the user to turn off the radio, even when line load is above the required level to power it. Why is that a point of discussion? Because if the radio is continuously broadcasting and somebody shows up, then they would see it broadcasting or sniff it if was hidden and then try to hack into the device. So what we've done is we've added an extra feature in our Versa-Tech II and out Versa-Tech XC product lines where the user can completely deactivate the radio so it is not broadcasting. If users do need to access the radio, then a user needs to physically touch the device and drop the red NR handle to override the power OFF function. Once the red NR handle is pushed back up, the radio would then shut OFF again.