Dubbed WPA3, the first draft of the new standard will be issued later this year.

Presumably, the Wi-Fi Alliance has been driven to hurry up the new standard due to last year's discovery of a major flaw in the WPA2 protocol.

Belgian researcher Mathy Vanhoef, who found the flaw, said at the time that it was in the Wi-Fi standard itself, and not in individual products or implementations.

One of the new features will block W-Fi authentication attempts to brute force passwords after a number of failed logins. A second feature will allow the use of nearby WiFi-enabled devices to configure other devices.

Another feature will strengthen user privacy in open networks through individualised data encryption.

And lastly, a 192-bit security suite, aligned with the Commercial National Security Algorithm Suite from the Committee on National Security Systems, will protect Wi-Fi networks like those of government, defence organisations and industrial set-ups which have higher security requirements.

Wi-Fi Alliance president and chief executive Edgar Figueroa said: “Security is a foundation of Wi-Fi Alliance certification programmes, and we are excited to introduce new features to the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED family of security solutions.

“The Wi-Fi CERTIFIED designation means Wi-Fi devices meet the highest standards for interoperability and security protections.”