Wi-fi router security tips

Wi-fi routers and modems allow you to share your high-speed internet connection with multiple computers or wireless devices throughout your home. Though convenient, most wi-fi routers have security risks if not configured differently from the default out-of-the-box settings. Below are the first 3 things that Computer Techs professionals do to secure a newly installed wireless router:

1. Set-up WPA wireless encryption: Wireless encryption effectively “scrambles” the wireless radio signals between your router and wireless devices so that only devices that have the wireless encryption key can communicate with it. There are 2 standard encryption methods – WEP and WPA – we use the more secure WPA method whenever possible.

2. Changing the default SSID: The SSID is the name of your network that is broadcast that other people with wireless devices can see. We change the SSID to a name that is recognizable by you, but not necessarily by others within range of your wireless network. The typical range of a wi-fi wireless network is a few hundred feet.

3. Changing the router’s administrator/management password: The administrator/management password should be changed to help prevent unauthorized changes to the settings of your wireless router. Unauthorized changes could lock you out of your wireless router and network. Also computer malware can now change router settings to direct your internet browsing to fake web sites.

If securing your wireless router looks a bit confusing, give us a call so that a Computer Techs expert can properly secure your wireless router for you.