Nowadays, it is rare to find a home without a Wi-Fi router that provides internet access to every household member. Everyone needs to get the password to connect their laptops or smartphones to access your internet setup. But there are times when other people get hold of your password without your permission.
Wi-Fi systems can pass through the walls of your home, which is why other people can access it even if they are not inside the house. If more people figured out what your password is, it would be challenging to control who can access your internet network at home. It could compromise your online security. To avoid this, you must implement several changes in your internet setup and routines.
Here are several simple yet crucial tasks that you need to do to boost the security of the network.
Create A Complicated Router Password
As soon as you install your internet setup, you must ensure that the password you will assign for your router is difficult to remember to enhance your system security. It should be not easy to guess for other people outside your household.
You need to avoid generic passwords like your names or birthdays and those listed as the world’s most common passwords. Instead, create a combination of numbers, capitals, and symbols like !” £$%^&*.
Limit The People Who Have Access To The Password
While it may be reasonable to share your Wi-Fi access with your friends or anyone who visits your house, you do not feel obliged to give out the password to any person who gets inside your home. For example, any service provider who enters your home, like a gardener, plumber, or decorator, does not have to know your password.
If commercial visitors need access to the internet to complete their services, their employers should give them a portable router or a data plan. They should not use your home access because they should include it in their services.
Change The Password Regularly
There is no exact rule about how often you must change your password. However, you must change the password regularly. You might be worried that you need to memorise a new password all the time, but most Wi-Fi routers usually require you to log in to your device once for regular access.
As much as possible, you must change the router password every month. If there are plenty of people coming in and out of the home, you may choose to change the password weekly.
Change The Network Name
Router manufacturers usually create the same settings for all their products. It means they install the same administration software on every router model that they create. Because of this, hackers can easily access the router anytime, especially with the help of network detection software. It does not require them to get inside the home to access your network. The hackers can easily identify you through your SSID or the network name.
You must change the SSID to avoid giving away your router brand and model. Make sure that you do not use any identifier mentioning your name, address, or any contact number. You must also avoid using other personal information, offensive language, or any terms that could provoke the hackers to exert any effort in getting into your network.
Protecting your Wi-Fi network at home is very crucial to protect your online security. It may be tiring to do these measures all the time. But these little efforts are necessary to avoid unauthorised access to your home network.