Wireless Router MAC-filtering Question

contraband

Hey, since Phantasy Star 0 is out, I want to play it online. I have an Apple AirPort Base Station which can only encrypt with WPA/2, and my puny DS Lite can only do WEP. Since I can't make a WEP network with my router, what I CAN do is make an open network and apply security by filtering MAC addresses. I have a housemate who also uses it, so ideally I'd want to allow access for his computer and my DS, and deny all others, correct? (I'm not worrying about my computer--the AEBS allows for two networks at once, and I use the primary connection for my computer since his laptop doesn't have a 5GHz wireless-N radio, which is what the router is tuned to broadcast. Right now it's set up for him to use the guest network with WPA2).

My one concern is security. I live in an apartment, and my airport can pick up about 10 different networks, all of them locked and most of them with WPA. How easy is "MAC address spoofing"? I'd just like to get opinions on this, as I realize the chances of any nearby established resident somehow caring enough to spoof/crack their way onto my network are pretty slim. Is there any way for me to occasionally monitor the connections to detect suspicious behavior? I know when my housemate is home, so I could do some cross-referencing... I know this is overkill for a DS game, but I'm also interested in getting more familiar with this sort of thing. Thanks!

Zxerol

MAC filtering is all but useless when it comes to securing your network. MAC addresses are carried as-is in an 802.11 wireless frame, and it takes literally about a minute for someone to sniff your wireless traffic, grab a valid MAC address, and then spoof it. Don't rely on it if you're serious about keeping people off your network.