Wireless keyboard

A wireless keyboard or colloquially Wireless keyboard or wireless keyboard is a wireless keyboard that their data via a radio signal to the PC transfers. In any case, the keyboard is the transmitter and a unit connected to the PC is the receiver.

technology

In contrast to infrared keyboards, the keyboard and receiver do not have to be in direct visual contact with one another. Obstacles such as B. a stack of books between them are no problem. Wireless keyboards require their own power supply.

The transmission usually takes place via Bluetooth or in the 2.4 GHz band. Earlier devices usually had a separate receiver that was connected to the computer via a PS / 2 or USB interface. Today the receiver is mostly implemented via a USB dongle .

Some manufacturers also offer complete sets of wireless keyboards and mice . There are also keyboards with an integrated touchpad as a mouse replacement. Miniaturized versions of this are often used as remote controls for media PCs .

Security aspects

With all procedures, ranges of 3 to 5 m within a room can usually be managed without any problems. Disadvantage of the radio: If the range is too great, the data can theoretically also be received in a larger area (neighboring apartments). This is a serious security problem, as most inexpensive wireless keyboards send their data unencrypted.

However, cable keyboards can also be tapped, as the connection cable, which is usually barely or not at all shielded, acts as a transmitting antenna. The impulses of the signal transmission can also propagate in the power grid . The signals can be read out in both cases with the appropriate effort and measuring equipment. A wireless keyboard with encryption can therefore be more secure than a wired keyboard without encryption.

Whether and how well the entries are encrypted can be found out from the manufacturer. Some manufacturers now use 128-bit AES encryption for all alphanumeric and modifying (Alt, Shift, etc.) keys. As a result, the signals can be listened to, but practically not deciphered according to the current status. However, the security of encryption with 128-bit AES also depends on the implementation of the encryption; there are points of attack if the implementation is incorrect. The wireless keyboards from the manufacturer Logitech with their Unifying technology, for which the manufacturer specifies 128-bit AES encryption, have already been hacked due to a faulty implementation.