Can 802.11 Networking Be Made Safe?

plumpy asks: "I am a developer at a small (~100 people) company that develops web and wireless (Palm, WAP) applications. Recently a few developers began a campaign to get a wireless access point for the company so that we could carry our laptops to meetings and work more flexibly. Two people had been bringing in their own personal access points from home while we waited for someone to actually purchase one for the company. Everything was going okay, and it sounded like the purchase request was going to go through. Then our IT manager read a few of the recent articles about the lack of security in 802.11 networks and killed the idea." Wireless Networks, like their wired counterparts are only as secure as the procedures behind the people that maintain them. A wireless AP can be secured against casual attacks and WEP, properly implemented, should take care of the rest, shouldn't it?

"From what I've read, it sounds like 802.11 is not as secure as it COULD be, but is plenty secure for most networks. My IT manager LIKES wireless (he has an 802.11 network at home) but doesn't think it's secure enough for the workplace. Does anyone have any links to articles that could convince him otherwise? Or does anyone have any articles that can convince me he's right? Also, does anyone have any stories about where wireless networking has been helpful for developers. There is some additional resitance because management thinks it's just a toy for us with no real useful applications."