Having an open wireless network can be a security risk as it
may allow anyone who is close enough to your router (e.g. a neighbor or
someone war driving )to access your network.So, its very important to secure your wireless router. To make your home wireless
network more secure, consider the below suggestions:
If you have never been prompted for a key, password, or
passphrase when connecting to your wireless network, it is an unsecured
network. In other words, if anyone is close enough to your router, they could
connect to your network. To enable security, open your router setup screen and
look for a Wireless Security section. The picture to the right is an example of
a Linksys router setup in the Wireless
Security section.
Select the wireless security method of either WEP, WPA, or WPA2
(we suggest WPA or WPA2, which is mentioned further down on this page) and
enter a passphrase to generate the keys. After enabling security on the router,
any wireless device that wants to connect to the router must have the key to
connect to your network.
Change default password
Make sure the router password is not using the default password.
If the default password is being used, it can be easily guessed and give
someone access to your router. With access to the router setup, a person could
change your router settings, including viewing any security keys.
If available use WPA, not
WEP
Many routers today will offer two or three different security
schemes: WEP, WPA,
and WPA2. We recommend WPA or WPA2 security since it is more secure than WEP.
However, for compatibility with some older devices, such as gaming consoles,
TiVo, and other network devices, WEP may be the only security option possible
to use. Using WEP is still better than no security at all.
Disable remote
administration
When enabled, remote administration allows anyone close enough
to your router to view or change your router settings. If you never plan on
remotely administrating your network, e.g. wireless connecting to the router,
we recommend disabling remote administration. With routers that support this
option, it is often disabled through the Administration section.
When disabled, the router settings can still be changed using
any computer that is directly connected to the router using a network cable.
Change the default SSID
name
The SSID is the name that identifies your
wireless router. By default, many routers will use the name of the router as
the default SSID. For example, Linksys routers use 'Linksys' as the SSID. Using
a default SSID is a security risk since it identifies the brand of the router
and would let any attacker immediately know what exploits to use.
Enable router
firewall
Many
routers also have a firewall that
can be enabled. If available, we also suggest enabling this feature, as it
helps add an extra layer of security to your network.
Disable SSID
broadcast
To
help make finding your wireless network easier, wireless routers broadcast your
SSID, which means anyone looking for a wireless router could see your SSID. To
help make it more difficult for someone to find your network when browsing for
a wireless network, you can disable the SSID broadcast feature. However, when
disabling the SSID broadcast, it will require that you manually enter your
router's unique SSID when wanting to connect any new device to your network.
Enable wireless MAC
filter
The
Wireless MAC filter feature only allows a wireless device to connect to your
router if the MAC
Address has been
entered into the filter list. Doing MAC filtering can make connecting new
devices to your network more difficult, but improves the overall security of
your wireless router and networks
Leave us a comment if you have any Question
No comments: