5 Tips to Keep Hackers From Connecting to Your Home Network

The number one rule of having a Wi-Fi network in your home is to make sure it’s secure. An unsecured network can lead to unauthorized access, whether it be your neighbors or hackers, to connect to your Wi-Fi network. Here are 5 tips on how to keep uninvited users from connecting to your home network:

1. Do not broadcast - SSID or Service Set Identifier is a name that identifies a particular wireless network. SSIDs can be broadcasted so that wireless Internet devices within the range can detect your wireless network. But announcing it “publicly” makes it easier for hackers to break into your home network. For security reason, turn off/disable the SSID broadcast.  

   
    

2. Change your router’s factory settings- The factory settings on a new wireless router isn’t enough for optimum security. Most wireless routers are pre-configured with a default IP address (192.168.1.1) and login details (username: admin, password: admin) which can be easily used by anyone. Log in to your router and change the default IP address and password. Use a complex password, but easy for you to remember.

   

    

3. Enable encryption - Implement the strongest form of encryption supported by your router. Most of the modern wireless routers these days support WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy), WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access) and WPA2 encryption methods. We recommend that you use WPA or WPA2 instead of WEP. Since WEP is one of the earliest forms of encryption, it just offers 128-bit key system which can be easily hacked.

   

    

4. Enable MAC (Media Access Control) filtering- Everynetwork device such as a Network Interface Card (NIC) and a wireless adapter are assigned a unique identifier called a ‘MAC address’ by the manufacturer. Enable MAC filtering on your wireless router and you can control which computers can connect to your home network and which computers can’t.

   

   To find the MAC address of a NIC/wireless card, go to the Command Prompt screen and type in ”ipconfig /all”. Locate the Physical Address row under Wireless LAN adapter Wireless Network Connection and make a note of the 12 digit MAC address.

   

    

5. Avoid using DHCP - DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) is a network protocol that enables a server to automatically assign an IP address to client computers in a network. Using DHCP is very convenient, but is risky. When SSID is broadcasted without any encryption method (WPA/WPA2), intruders can easily connect to your network and be assigned an IP address automatically. You should disable this feature and manually assign IP addresses to each computer in your network. The manual process may sound tedious, but makes it much more secure.

Spend some time implementing these tips to secure your network and you’ll be five steps further from allowing a hacker to access your network.

If you need help securing your home network, call a Personal Technology Expert at 1-800-PC-Support (1-800-727-8776).