Nowadays WiFi theft is one of the most practiced things in the whole 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 possible forecasts to prevent their wireless network from being violated by intruders and thus steal the signal from it.
All this is known as hacker , and now this is something that cybercriminals practice so much for the wireless connections of large companies, banks, institutions and households. Therefore, your Internet connection may also be in danger if you do not have adequate security to prevent these possible access by external people.
There are currently 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 cybercriminals who try to access your WiFi network . So here we go to teach which are the main methods to improve and protect your wireless signal from potential hacker . To do this you just have to follow the steps that we will explain below.
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Steps and methods to improve and protect our wireless Internet network
Protecting the wireless network of homes or work sites is one of the most important things when you want to have optimal Internet performance . You should keep in mind that the moment the Internet is being stolen it will start working much slower. Therefore, you will start to have lower performance.
So that this will start to become a problem for you, it is there that the importance of being able to have a secure wireless signal comes, which cannot be available to anyone and of course in the hands of malicious hackers and experts.
Because of all this, most users constantly investigate what are the main methods by which these connections are going to be protected, it is important to keep in mind that there are thousands of ways to do so, some more effective than others. That is why 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 security on your connection, it can be easily violated by an expert hacker in the area or simply with the entering the Internet and looking for passwords and users due to router defects could reach your network.
Due to this, it is essential that you change both the user and the password. It is recommended to use passwords of at least 8 characters and that you combine it between uppercase, lowercase letters, symbols and numbers in order to make it as safe as possible.
Change SSID
The SSID identifier is one of the most basic configurations of all routers for the WiFi connection . However, the use of it turns out to be too common, usually it always has the name of the provider, which will make it much easier for cybercriminals to break the security parameters to try to enter it .
An example of this would be TP LINK wireless routers, their SSIDs usually have a name like TP LINK followed by the device 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 due to that the encryption algorithms that SSIDs incorporate , and the password dictionaries that are used by hackers are preloaded with the most common SSIDs. Therefore, it is very they may be able to access yours.
The most advisable thing in this case is to change the name it brings by default and place one that is easy to remember , it is also not recommended to place a name that identifies the home or family, the more incognito it is Much better for your safety. You will even have the opportunity to hide the entire SSID as long as your team model allows you to perform this step.
Control and limit WiFi network coverage
The theft of identity and the Internet is increasing , this makes users increasingly want to have better security in their wireless networks. One way to avoid or control this is by limiting network coverage , it is generally recommended that it is not powerful since the idea is not to offer a WiFi connection to a large number of people but simply want to cover the area of the house or office.
You should keep in mind that if your wireless coverage has a long distance, anyone with a laptop or Smartphone can access a connection, to spy on or carry out any illegal activity. Therefore, it is essential that you can limit this, preferably it is recommended that it only covers the area of your home.
This can be done as follows:
- The first thing you have to do is know how far the reach of your network goes, for this you can start walking with your mobile phone along your home , either by the garden or the outskirts, there you will see the WiFi icon with the range signal where you can measure how far the signal covers.
- Once you know how far your router’s coverage arrives, you have to move it to a different location, the best option to limit the coverage is to place it in the center of the house, you can also 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 opposite to the house of your neighbors or the street. If your device is two antennas you can remove one to send 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” This can be reduced by half the signal.
- And finally you can use the paint for special walls to block the signal, in this way you will prevent coverage from reaching long distances where it can be within reach of intruders.
Disable UPnP
UPnP is a communication protocol between the private network and devices and one of its main functions is to open the ports automatically without the need to that the user has to directly configure the router .
Routers have incoming ports that are closed for security reasons , if this were not the case, they would end up being easy targets for malware who could access open ports . But you should keep in mind that with the applications that support UPnP you will be able to open these ports to any local network, but this is where the problem is, since many malware can also support these UPnP.
Therefore keeping them activated can prove to be a security risk. It is generally recommended to keep deactivated UPnP and instead use DMZ Host which is a simpler configuration to open the ports and does not have any security risk since ports automatically redirects to the Virtual Servers console.
Update firmware
The firmware updates are a fundamental 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 up to date will help you have proper use and good control of your wireless network , as well as being more protected from attack by any hacker.
Updating the firmware is usually really simple, which is why we will explain how to do it here, keep in mind that before starting the process it is necessary for to download the latest firmware version to your computer, once downloaded you can start with the update, for this you will need to perform the following steps:
- To start you will need to start your preferred browser, in the “Search bar” you will enter “192.168.1.1 ” and then press the “Enter” key. If this address does not work you have to verify the router’s IP address, usually it is on the back of the device.
- Now you have to enter your login data, the user and the password , if you have never changed it you can try “Admin” for both boxes.
- Once you have entered the system you have to click on “Administration” and then “Firmware” .
- Once you are in the “Firmware” section, you have to select accounExaminar•.
- A window will appear where you have to look for the previously downloaded version and finally you give importantabrirrd.
- Click the “Start Upgrade” button to start the update.
- After a few seconds this will have been updated and the process will be finished.
Turn off WiFi if you’re not going to use it
Other alternatives that you can use if you want to prevent others from stealing your wireless network is to turn off the WiFi if you are not using it , in this way you will be able to avoid risks of others trying to access it.
Usually, this is used when you are at home, therefore, every time you leave your home or office you can disconnect it or before going to sleep , this way you will be avoiding that other users or the hacker themselves may violate your security and access your Internet connection.
Have secure encryption
One of the most important tools for the security of your WiFi device is the encryption of the data that will be transmitted on it. Therefore, it is essential to have completely secure encryption. Currently the new router models have three systems or protocols; WEP, WPA and WPA2.
Nowadays the WEP protocol is no longer used, or it is used very little, usually, if you have the possibility of choosing the system yourself it is recommended to choose WPA or if it is available to use WPA2 since it is the most modern and therefore it will be the one that gives you greater security.
Being able to have a WPA2 protocol will help you have a more secure wireless signal , since offers you very high levels of security . But, it is important that before you want to make use of this system to verify if the equipment you are using can support it, you can know this easily, if your equipment is old, it will most likely 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 password, either every 30 days or maximum every 60 days This way you can prevent unwanted people from accessing your network.
Activate MAC filter from router 
This will allow you to create your own list of allowed devices so that they can make use of your network, giving you greater security. The MAC filter is currently considered as another of the most useful security methods for the router.
With this method you will be able to manage a little more what will be access to your WiFi network, especially today when most people have an Android or iOS device They can access any wireless signal at any time they want.
It is important to mention that if the network is blocked it can restrict the access of the majority but, today there are many ways to violate security and access to that network, which is known from long ago as a hacker with bad intentions.
The MAC is a protocol that serves as a network card for devices , whose main function is to identify them to authorize the transmission of information and to the organization.
By activating this filter you can guarantee that only the devices and laptop that you authorize are the ones that will make use of your wireless network, making it much safer.
Use monitoring tools
Other options you can make is to use the monitoring tool for your router , since an overloaded device can make communication 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 equipment, determine the bandwidth, the devices connected to it, the amount of traffic , among many things more.
With this tool you will be able to have greater control over the equipment , there you will be able to know what factors may be affecting its operation and know how much device is linked to the router. All this will make your job much easier by wanting to improve and have better performance of your wireless connection.
How to know if my Wi-Fi network is being used by another person?
Being able to know for sure if other people are stealing your WiFi connection can be a bit complicated, since this is somewhat difficult to achieve. However, there are different indications that can help us take these types of questions into account .
This is not just about third parties that can get to enter your connections, but about cybercriminals that can generate identity theft or bank data. It is therefore the importance of always being aware of who uses your WiFi or not.
Some of the main clues that will allow us to know this kind of thing or at least suspect are the following:
- One of the ways to know if other people are using your WiFi network is to see the Internet connection behavior. Usually , 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, so interference is being created that does not let the service work properly, since it gets much heavier and slower.
However, it is important to clarify that this problem may also be related to other aspects , whether it is network problems, especially if it is a rainy day, service problems technician or router .
- Another way to verify this is to use one of free online tools that will let you know if your wireless connection is being stolen, these tools are available for 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 security but, if 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 it will only allow you to see the devices that are connected at the moment, that is, if you enter within an hour and the users are connected you can see it , but if they are not, no one will appear, that’s where we refer to the term of luck.