In a few simple words, a primary Home WiFi Network means connecting an Internet access point, such as a cable from your Internet Service Provider, to a (wireless) router to allow several devices to link to the network very quickly.
After we have mounted a wireless router in several situations, we find a spot for it in our home and forget about it. That’s all that matters as long as all of your devices are set up and linked through the WiFi network, right?
Many of you probably don’t know that, but one of the most critical gadgets in our house is the Internet router. It is the key to our internet connectivity and is also vulnerable to cybercriminals’ attacks that can sneak into our computers and access our system.
Let’s not forget that we live in the era of data breaches, attacks by ransomware, and many other threats online. It would help if you also were concerned about protecting your Home WiFi Network Security and taking all the security steps required to improve WiFi security.
12 security measures to secure your home WiFi network
Setting up a password and stopping neighbors and other people from gaining control of your data is the only measure most people use to safeguard their Home WiFi Network Security. Yet, we need to take protection more seriously and do more than just set up a temporary password. To retrieve confidential information or take advantage of your network to conduct malicious attacks such as Man-in-the-Middle attacks, network sniffing, or data theft, a serious risk is that an online criminal might exploit your weak WiFi security measures and ‘listen’ to your traffic.
WiFi networks are not necessarily Secure networks, but they are relatively easy to use and access. WiFi has many security problems, and it is worth noting the Krack vulnerability found in the Wireless Protected Access II (WPA2) protocol that has affected all Wi-Fi-connected devices.
For this reason, it is a wise and intelligent step to learn how to protect your Home WiFi Network against cybercriminals. With how many Internet of Things devices you can own, ensuring that your network is extra secure carries even more weight, even though it can sometimes be a tedious yet essential job to take care of your cybersecurity.
In this article, you will learn how to protect your home WiFi network better and reduce the chances of compromising your valuable data.
To improve your home WiFi network security, use these steps below:
1. Change your default home WiFi network name (SSID)
The first thing you can do is change your WiFi network’s name, also known as SSID, if you want better enhance your home WiFi network security (Service Set Identifier).
Although giving your WiFi a very suggestive name such as “Can’t hack this” may backfire at times, other names such as “this is not a WiFi” or “too fly for a WiFi” are entirely appropriate.
Changing your WiFi’s default name makes it harder for malicious attackers to know what router type you have. If a cybercriminal knows your router’s maker’s name, they can realize the model’s weaknesses and then attempt to exploit them.
We strongly advise you not to name anything like “David’s WiFi” your home WiFi network. When there are potentially three or four other nearby Wi-Fis, you do not want them to know at first glance which wireless network is yours.
Also, note that you could be exposed to identity theft by sharing too much personal information on a wireless network name.
2. Ensure to set a strong password to protect your home WiFi network
You probably know that every wireless router has a default username and password pre-set, which is required to install and connect your router in the first place. The worst part: it’s easy for hackers, especially if they know the maker, to guess it.
So, make sure you instantly change them both.
At least 20 characters should be a solid wireless password and include numbers, letters, and different symbols.
Set up a strong password for your network using this guide. Friends coming over for a visit might complain about the unusual length of your password. Still, with boring Facebook or Instagram posts, this may prevent them from needlessly consuming your data.
3. Enable network encryption
Multiple encryption languages, such as WEP, WPA or WPA2, come with WiFi routers.
WPA2 stands for WiFi Safe Access 2 to better understand this terminology. It is both a security protocol and a current industry standard (WPA2 networks are almost everywhere) and encrypts traffic on WiFi networks. It also replaces WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy), which is older and less reliable and updates the original WPA (WiFi Safe Access) technology. All WiFi approved products can use WPA2 encryption as of 2006.
WPA2 AES is now a standard protection framework too, so it is compatible with all wireless networks. Use these six steps if you wish to allow WPA2 encryption on your wireless router. Here’s how to protect your wireless network if you are using a TP-Link wireless router.
The good news is that there is already a WPA3 that will replace WPA2. The WiFi Alliance has recently introduced its next-generation security standard for wireless networks to address a common security problem: open WiFi networks. More than that, it comes with security upgrades and provides a suite of features for users and service providers to simplify WiFi security setup.
4. Switch off your home WiFi network when you’re not home
We highly suggest that you disable the home WiFi network in the event of prolonged periods of non-use to protect your network. For all your computers using Ethernet cables or when you’re not at home, you can do the same thing.
- By doing so, you are closing any windows of opportunity that malicious hackers can try to reach while you are away.
- Here are a few benefits of having your wireless network disabled:
- It minimizes the chances of being a victim of hackers by turning off your network equipment for security purposes.
Surge protection-You also reduce the risk of being affected by electric power spikes when you power your network system off;
While modern home WiFi network is far quieter these days, disabling your wireless home network will bring peace to your home. Noise reduction
5. Where is your router located in your home?
You probably haven’t thought about this in the first one, but where your WiFi position is in your home can also affect your safety.
Place the wireless router as close to the centre of your house as possible. About why? First of all, it will provide all the rooms in your home with fair access to the Internet. Secondly, you don’t want your wireless signal range to extend too far beyond your house, where malicious people can easily intercept it.
For this reason, as there is nothing to obstruct the signal going outside your house, we suggest that you do not position your wireless router close to a window.
6. Use the correct network administrator password to improve home WiFi protection.
You usually need to visit an online website or forum to set up your wireless router, where you can make some improvements to your network settings.
Most WiFi routers come with default credentials such as “admin” and “password”, easy for malicious hackers to break through.
Did you know that the number of wireless networks has risen dramatically over the last eight years? There were 20 million WiFi networks globally in 2010, and that number soared to 400 million in 8 years.
This rise has been driven by smartphones, laptops, tablets and other devices. Most people prefer to connect their devices to wireless Internet connections because of how costly data plans are.
7. Change default Wireless Router IP address.
It would be best to consider changing the default IP address to a less popular one to help protect your home WiFi network and make it more difficult for hackers to monitor it.
You should follow these measures to modify the IP address of a router:
- As an administrator, log into your router’s console. These simple steps will teach you how to link easily as an admin to your home WiFi network. Typically, the form of the address bar looks like http://192.168.1.1 or http://192.168.0.1.1 or http://192.168.0.11.
- Enter the username and password on the login page once you’re there;
- Then pick network> LAN, which is on the left side of the menu.
- Adjust the choice to an IP address, then press Save.
Note: You will need to enter a new IP address in the web browser bar after you have changed the IP address.
You may also adjust the DNS server used to process Internet traffic on your wireless router, and this guide will show you how to do it.
8. Switch off the DHCP feature.
To improve wireless network security, you can switch off the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server on your router, the IP address assigned to each device on the network. You can use a static address instead and enter your network settings.
This means that you should enter and allocate an IP address acceptable for your router to your computer.
9. Disable Remote Access
Most routers allow only the connected device to access their interface. However, some of them allow access from remote systems as well.
Once remote access is turned off, malicious actors will not be able to access your router’s privacy settings from a device not connected to your wireless network.
To make this change, go to the web interface and search for “Remote Access” or “Remote Administration.”
10. Always keep your router software up-to-date.
Software is a crucial part of your wireless network security. Like any other software, a wireless router’s firmware contains flaws that can become significant vulnerabilities and be used mercilessly by hackers, as this unfortunate family would find out.
Unfortunately, many wireless routers don’t have the option to auto-update their software, so you’ve got to go through the trouble of doing this manually.
And even for those WiFi networks that can auto-update, you still need to switch to this setting. But, we’re reminding you about the importance of software patching and how neglecting this can leave open doors for cybercriminals to exploit various vulnerabilities. Read what security experts say about updating your software and why it’s the key to online security.
11. Enable Firewalls (can help secure your home WiFi network)
Firewalls are not just software programs used on your PC; they also come in various hardware.
A hardware firewall does the same thing as a software one, but its most significant advantage is that it adds an extra security layer.
The best part about hardware firewalls is that most of the best wireless routers have built-in firewalls to protect your network from potential cyber-attacks. This article can help you figure out if your router has a firewall built-in and how you can turn it on. And we strongly suggest that you turn it on t if it’s not an extra layer of protection by default.
If your router doesn’t have one, you can install a useful firewall device on your router to protect your system from malicious hacking attempts on your home WiFi network.
12. Enhance frequently connected device’s protection
Necessary: Don’t leave any vulnerabilities for online criminals to pick up!
Even though you have increased protection for your router and home WiFi network, you need to ensure you don’t have any security holes that online criminals can exploit.
Here’s what we’re recommending to secure home WiFi network
- Remember to keep your devices up to date with the latest software available.
- Always apply the latest security patches to ensure that no security hole is left open to malicious actors.
- Check which devices are most often connected to your home WiFi network and ensure they have antivirus and antimalware security software installed. If you don’t know which one you should choose, this guide will be handy.
- Ensure your devices are protected by multiple security layers consisting of specialized security software such as updated antivirus programs and traffic filtering software. You may consider using an antimalware program such as our Thor Foresight or Malwarebytes.
Wrapping Up
Securing the home WiFi network should be a top priority for us interested in keeping the data secure and secure. These steps can be handy even for a non-technical skilled person to apply.
Don’t forget that your home WiFi network security can sometimes be weak and prone to exploits. It almost doesn’t matter how strong your password is or if your software is up-to-date, or if cybercriminals can hijack your WiFi data.
So that’s why we’ve written this guide on how to secure a wireless network. However, you still have to keep an eye out for unsafe WiFi routers out there, as most people are likely always to use WEP and not follow these safety procedures.