HP Deskjet 5850 Color Inkjet Printer - Manual (Page 16)

wired equivalent privacy (WEP)
Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) provides security by encrypting data sent over radio
waves from one wireless device to another wireless device.
WEP encodes the data sent across the network making the data unintelligible to
eavesdroppers. Only devices that share the same WEP settings as the printer will be
able to communicate with the printer.
For example, if the printer's network uses WEP, only devices that have the same WEP
settings as the printer will be able to use the printer.
WEP is a network feature
WEP is an optional wireless network feature. Not all wireless networks use WEP.
Configure the printer for WEP only if the printer's network uses WEP. The printer's
WEP settings must match the network's settings. If your network has WEP, you must
use an Ethernet cable to connect the printer to the network in order to install the
printer software.
If the printer's network does not use WEP, then do not configure the printer to use
WEP.
If you do not know if your network uses WEP, consult the configuration utility for your
computer's NIC card or your network's
Wireless Access Point (WAP) .
WEP keys
Devices on a WEP-enabled network use WEP keys to encode data.
After creating a set of WEP keys, record and store the keys in a secure location. You
may not be able to retrieve the WEP keys if you lose them.
Caution! If you lose the WEP keys, you will not be able to add a new
device to your network without reconfiguring the WEP settings for
every device on the network.
A WEP-enabled network might use multiple WEP keys. Each WEP key is assigned a
key number (such as Key 2). Each device on the network must recognize all the
network's WEP keys and the key number assigned to each WEP key.
configuring the printer to use WEP
Use the printer's embedded Web server (EWS) to configure the printer to use WEP.