How to improve the security of your WiFi network and protect ourselves from possible intruders? step by step guide

Today WiFi theft is one of the most practiced things all over the world and it is that thanks to technological advances this is something that can be done more and more easily. It is important to mention that all users always take the possible precautions to prevent your wireless network can be violated by intruders and thus steal the signal from it.

All of this is known as hackerand currently this is something that cyber criminals practice so much for wireless connections of large companies, banks, institutions and homes. Therefore, your Internet connection could also be in danger if you do not have adequate security to prevent these possible accesses from external people.

Currently there are infinite methods with which they will be able to violate the security of your connection. However, there are also different ways in which you will be able to defend yourself against these cyber criminals let them try access your Wi-Fi network. In such a way that here we are going to show you what are the main methods to improve and protect your wireless signal from would-be hackers. To do this you will only have to follow the steps that we will explain below.

Steps and methods to improve and protect our wireless Internet network

Protecting the wireless network of homes or workplace is one of the most important things when wanting to have optimal internet performance. You must bear in mind that at the moment that your Internet is being stolen, it will begin to work much slower. Therefore, you will start to have a lower performance.

In such a way that this will begin to become a problem for you, that is where the importance of being able to have a secure wireless signalwhich cannot be available to anyone and of course in the hands of malicious and expert hackers.

Due to all this, most users are constantly investigating what are the main methods with which these connections will be able to be protected, it is important to bear in mind that there are thousands of ways to do it, some more effective than others. It is because of that here we will show you some methods so you can do this:

Change the default username and password

You have to keep in mind that using the default username and password will not bring you any type of security in your connection, This can be easily violated by an expert hacker in the area or simply by entering the Internet and looking for passwords and default users of the routers could access your network.

Because of this, it is essential that you change both the username and the password. It is recommended to use passwords of at least 8 characters and that you combine it between uppercase letters, lowercase letters, symbols and numbers in order to make it as safe as possible.

Change SSID

The SSID is one of the most basic settings of all routers for WiFi connection. However, the use of it turns out to be too common, it usually always has the name of the provider, which will make it much easier for you to cybercriminals can break security parameters to try to get into it.

An example of this would be TP LINK wireless routers, commonly their SSIDs usually have a name like TP LINK followed by the equipment model number.

These SSIDs almost always end up giving more account information which can end up being a problem for the security of your Internet network. And all this is because the encryption algorithms embedded in the SSIDsand the password dictionaries that used by hackers are preloaded with the most common SSIDs. Therefore, it is very possible that they can access yours.

The best thing to do in this case is change the default name and place one that is easy to remember, it is also not recommended to place a name that identifies the home or the family, the more incognito the better for your security. You will even have the opportunity to hide all the SSID as long as the model of your equipment allows you to perform this step.

Control and limit WiFi network coverage

Identity and internet theft is on the riseThis makes users increasingly want to have better security in their wireless networks. One way to avoid or control this is limiting network coverageit is generally recommended that this should not be far-reaching since the idea it is not to offer a WiFi connection to a large number of people but simply you want it to cover the area of ​​the house or office.

You should keep in mind that if you wireless coverage has long distance anyone with a laptop or smartphone can access a connection, either to spy or carry out some illegal activity. Therefore, it is essential that you can limit this, preferably it is recommended that it only cover the area of ​​your home.

You can do this in the following way:

• The first thing you have to do is find out how far your network reaches, for this you can start walk with your mobile phone throughout your houseeither by the garden or the outskirts, there it will appear WiFi icon with range signal where you will be able to measure how far the signal covers.
• Once you know to what extent the coverage of your router arrives, you have to move it to a different location, the best option to be able to limit the coverage is to place it in the center of the house, in the same way you can try placing it in different places.
• The next thing is to change the orientation of the modem antennas, These have to point in a direction away from your neighbors’ houses or the street. If your equipment has two antennas, you can remove one so that it sends less signal, since you are only interested in covering only the area of ​​your home.
• Most of the current equipment present the option of “radio power” you can reduce this to half the signal.
• And lastly you can use the paint for the special walls to block the signal, in this way you will prevent the coverage from reaching long distances where it can be within the reach of intruders.

Disable UPnP

UPnP is a communication protocol between the private network and the devices and one of its main functions is to open ports automatically without the need for the user to directly configure the router.

Routers have incoming ports that are closed for security reasonsif this were not so, they would end up being easy targets for the malware who could access the open ports. But you must bear in mind that with applications that support UPnP you will be able to open these ports to any local network, but this is where the problem lies, since Many malware can also support these UPnP.

So keep them activated may turn out to be a security risk. Generally, it is recommended to keep disabled UPnP and use DMZ Host instead which is a simpler configuration to be able to open the ports and does not have any type of security risk since the ports are automatically redirected to the console Virtual Servers.

update firmware

The firmware updates They are an essential tool for the proper functioning of the router, this will allow you to correct any type of errors as well as make the improvements that are necessary for the team. Being able to keep it always updated will help you to have a correct use and a good control of your wireless networkas well as being more protected from the attack of any hacker.

update firmware they are usually really simple, that is why here we will explain how to do it, keep in mind that before starting the process it is necessary that download the latest version of firmware to your computer, Once it is downloaded you can start with the update, for this it will be necessary to perform the following steps:

• To start you will need to start your preferred browser, in the “Search bar” you are going to enter “192.168.1.1” and then press the key “Enter”. If this address does not work you have to check the IP address of the router, it is usually on the back of the equipment.
• Now you have to enter your login details, username and passwordif you have never changed it you can try with “admin” for both boxes.
• Once you have entered the system you have to click on “Management” and then in “Firmware”.

• Once you are in the section “Firmware” you have to select “Review”.

• A window will appear where you have to look for the previously downloaded version and finally you give it “open”.

• Click the button “Start Upgrade” to start the update.

• After a few seconds this will have been updated and the process will be finished.

Turn off WiFi if you are not going to use it

Other alternatives that you can use in the case you want to prevent others from stealing your wireless network is to turn off WiFi if you are not using itin this way you will be able to avoid the risk of others trying to access it.

Generally, this is used when you are at home, therefore, every time you leave your home or office you can turn it off or before you go to sleepin this way you will be preventing other users or your own hacker can breach your security and access your Internet connection.

Have secure encryption

One of the most important tools for the security of your computer WiFi is data encryption that will be broadcast on it. Therefore, it is essential to be able to count on completely secure encryption. Currently the new router models have three systems or protocols; WEP, WPA and WPA2.

Today the WEP protocol it is no longer used, or is used very little, in general, if you have the possibility of choosing the system yourself, it is recommended choose WPA or if available use WPA2 since it is the most modern and therefore it will be the one that gives you the greatest security.

Being able to have a WPA2 protocol will help you have a more secure wireless signalas offers you very high levels of security. But, it is important that before wanting to use this system, check if the equipment you are using can support it, you can easily know this, if your equipment is old, it is most likely that it will not support it, but if you have You can use a new router without any problem.

It is important to keep in mind that whichever one is chosen, the most important thing in these cases is to be constantly changing the key, either every 30 days or maximum every 60 days in this way you can prevent the access of unwanted people to your network.

Activate MAC filter from the router

This will allow you to create your own list of allowed equipment so that they can make use of your network, thus providing you with greater security. The MAC filter It is currently considered another of the most useful security methods for the router.

With this method you will be able manage a little more what will be the access to your WiFi network, especially today when most people have a Android or iOS device that they can access any wireless signal anytime they want.

It is important to mention that if the network is blocked you can restrict the access of the majority but, today there are many ways to violate this security and access said network, which has long been known as a hacker with bad intentions.

The MAC is a protocol that serves as a network card for deviceswhose main function is to be able to identify them for authorize the transmission of information and to the organization.

By activating this filter you can guarantee that only the devices and laptops that you authorize are the ones that will use your wireless network, thus making it much more secure.

Use monitoring tools

Other options you can perform is to use the monitoring tool for your routersince an overloaded computer can cause communication is much slower. In such a way that monitoring it can be a very good option, this will allow you to know all the connections of the computer, determine the bandwidth, the devices connected to it, the amount of trafficamong many other things.

With this tool you will be able have greater control over the teamthere you will be able to know what factors may be affecting its operation and know how many device is bound to the router. All this will make your job much easier when you want to improve and have a better performance of your wireless connection.

How do I know if my Wi-Fi network is being used by someone else?

Being able to know for sure if other people they are stealing your wifi connection can be a bit tricky, as this is somewhat difficult to achieve. Nevertheless, There are different indications that can help us to take this into account. kind of questions.

This is not only about third parties that can get into your connections, but about cybercriminals who can generate identity theft or bank data. That is why it is important to always be aware of who is using or not using your WiFi.

Some of the main indications that will allow us to know this type of thing or at least suspect are the following:

• One of the ways to know if other people are using your Wi-Fi network is watching the behavior of the Internet connection. In general, if you had a fast internet all the time and suddenly it has started to fail, it is much slower, it may be that other people are stealing your signal, which is creating interference that does not allow the service to work correctly as it is done much heavier and slower.

However, it is important to clarify that this problem can also be related to other thingsAlready whether it is network problems, especially if it is a rainy day, technical support or router problems.

• Another way to verify this is by using one of the free online tools that will let you know if your wireless connection is being stolen, these tools are available to Windows and Mac, and for Android and iOS devices.

However, these tools are not usually the best to be able to determine this with complete certainty, but they can give you an idea if you are lucky to know if there are other people using your Internet.

And the problem with these applications is that they will only allow you to see the devices that are connected at the moment, that is, if you enter at an hour and the users are connected you will be able to see itbut if they are not, no one will simply appear, that is where we refer to the term luck.

Despite this, this type of tool is still an option to be able to clarify this type of doubt.

• Another way to find out if there are other people using the wireless network is completely turning off all the devices in the house so that none of them remain connected to the network. Once this is done, check flashing router lightsif it continues to flash, it is very possible that there are other people using the WiFi network.

If this happens, the first thing you have to do is change device password so that all devices linked to it are automatically disconnected.