Patent ID: 8351606

Claim:
In a communication system having at least one component with a wireless communication capability such that it is operable to act as a wireless communication access point, and a mobile station seeking to associate with the at least one component, a secure access protocol, the protocol comprising: receiving at the one component a management message from the mobile station; obtaining mobile identification information from the management message; obtaining an encryption key from a memory, the encryption key being associated with the mobile station based upon the mobile identification information; decrypting a portion of the management message using the encryption key to obtain decrypted information; verifying an identity of the mobile based upon the decrypted information; communicating an association message to the mobile station confirming an association, the association message only being communicated to the mobile station subsequent to verification of the identity of the mobile station based upon the decrypted information; and not sending any messages in response to the management message upon the failure to verify the identity of the mobile station.