Authentication failure in a wireless local area network
View Patent ↗In the event of an authentication process failure, a mobile station bans a connection profile storing the credentials provided by the mobile station when initiating the failed authentication process, thus affecting how subsequent scans—other than discovery scans—and connection attempts are handled. In the event of an authentication process failure, a mobile station bans or suppresses an access point with which the mobile station initiated the failed authentication process. The mobile station refrains from transmitting any communications addressed to the unique identifier of any banned access point. The mobile station may ignore any communications received from a banned access point. Suppressed access points are occasionally not made available to the mobile station for selection as a target for a connection attempt.
1. A method in a mobile station, the method comprising:
attempting to perform an authentication process with an access point, including transmitting in a manner receivable by the access point parameters from an editable connection profile stored in the mobile station, wherein the editable connection profile includes a network name;
determining that the authentication process has failed and consequently banning the editable connection profile;
if any active scanning for wireless local area networks, other than active scanning performed as part of a discovery scan, is performed by the mobile station while the editable connection profile is banned, excluding the editable connection profile from the active scanning; and
if any passive scanning for wireless local area networks, other than passive scanning performed as part of a discovery scan, is performed by the mobile station while the editable connection profile is banned, removing from results of the passive scanning any records including the network name of the editable connection profile.
2. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:
starting a timer as a result of failing to succeed in the authentication process; and
un-banning the editable connection profile as a consequence of expiry of the timer.
3. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:
detecting that the editable connection profile has been edited and consequently un-banning the editable connection profile.
4. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:
detecting that a wireless local area network radio of the mobile station has been turned off and consequently un-banning the editable connection profile.
5. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:
un-banning the editable connection profile if the editable connection profile is selected for connection from results of a discovery scan and if user input indicative of approval to un-ban the editable connection profile is received.
6. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:
detecting that the mobile station is no longer in a coverage area of any access point supporting a wireless local area network with the network name and consequently un-banning the editable connection profile.
7. A mobile station comprising:
a processor;
a wireless local area network communication interface coupled to the processor; and
a memory coupled to the processor, wherein the memory stores an editable connection profile that includes parameters and a network name, and a driver for the wireless local area network communication interface,
wherein the driver, when executed by the processor, is arranged to determine whether an attempt by the mobile station to perform an authentication process with an access point has failed and, if the attempt has failed, is arranged to consequently ban the editable connection profile, wherein the attempt included transmitting the parameters in a manner receivable by the access point,
wherein the driver, when executed by the processor, is arranged to exclude the editable connection profile from any active scanning for wireless local area networks performed by the mobile station while the editable connection profile is banned other than active scanning performed as part of a discovery scan, and
wherein the driver, when executed by the processor, is arranged to remove any records including the network name of the editable connection profile from results of any passive scanning for wireless local area networks performed by the mobile station while the editable connection profile is banned other than passive scanning performed as part of the discovery scan.