It is very common, especially in large cities, that people living near the location of our router can access the WiFi network without authorization. This brings a number of inconveniences to our Internet browsing , since it affects, among other things, the connection speed.
There are different alternatives that we can use to improve security in accessing the wireless network that we can configure from the router control panel.
In this article we will indicate each one of those options that you have for an efficient configuration of the router, as well as we will show you the advantages of being able to use them. In addition, we will give you the best tips to make your WiFi network a strength .
Index:
Why should I improve the security of my WiFi wireless networks?
There are different reasons why we have to improve the security of our wireless networks, many of them are due to the security of our privacy, but they also significantly affect the performance of our connection .
To clarify this issue a bit more, we will mention below what these reasons are.
Regarding privacy . It is an issue that many people do not consider, but when someone hacks a WiFi signal, this intruder has access to all the devices that integrate the wireless network, being able to change settings and extract data that seriously jeopardize our privacy and personal safety .
Another point to take into account with security is that, when you enter the wireless network you get the public IP address that the Internet operator gives us. If an intruder performs illegal acts on the web, they will be registered with our public IP , therefore, we may have serious problems.
Another point to consider is the connection speed . As we will see later, when third parties enter our network in an unauthorized way, they greatly impair the speed, since the bandwidth must be divided into more devices.
In addition, if that intruder performs a configuration on our router to activate the “QoS” tool (in English Quality of Service ) you can segment the trip of the packages video and VoIP data.
With this you will be able to indicate to the router that your equipment has priority over the rest, so we would be seriously affected in terms of navigation because, our own router is the one that You are performing that quality of service in accordance with the instructions given by the hacker.
How much can the speed of my Internet affect a person “steal” me WiFi?
Routers work with two frequencies, a 2.4 GHz one that has a range of up to 100 meters and has 13 channels , in which the different data packets travel between the devices and the router.
The other, higher frequency, is 5 GHz , which is much more efficient since it has 22 channels and a much better bandwidth, but its scope is much lower than the previous one.
These channels are like highways in which the data travels, if they take place these information packets will travel slower. Therefore, the more members of a slower network there will be the connection since the broad side will have to be divided into all these devices.
List of the main tools to secure your connection to avoid your WiFi connection someone connect to your network
Our router device has tools that we can activate or modify to make our WiFi network security much more robust.
To do this, we will name what are these configurations that we can make:
Filtered by MAC address
When the computer equipment is manufactured, each provider enters a unique identification number on the network cards that is made up of 48 bits . These numbers are not repeated in any way, no matter how much computers and mobile devices are compared.
Therefore, this is a good option to identify the participants of a network and to be able to eliminate them, telling our router which are those authorized according to their MAC address.
The steps we will have to perform on a Tp-Link router are as follows:
- We enter the router interface with our browser, for this we will write in the URL address bar “192.168.1.1” (if you do not know this number we will explain it in the last paragraph of this section, as well as the MAC address).
- We go to permittedWireless†.
- We look for the option “Access Point “.
- Select ” MAC Filters “.
- Activate the option filtered by MAC.
- Add one by one the devices with their different addresses.
- We click on “ Apply” .
- Select “Accept” .
When we do not know what the IP address or MAC address to enter the router can do this guide:
- We go to “Start” on Windows.
- We write “cmd” (another more direct alternative is to press together “Windows + R” ).
- At this moment a window will open in DOS.
- We type the command “ipconfig” .
- A series of data will appear and we will have to copy the one from “Default Gateway” .
Eject connected devices
We have an important alternative offered by the router and it is to identify the different computers that are connected at the time of the analysis . In this way we can find out how many intruders are unduly in our network.
The directions we have to follow are:
- Once entered in the router we go to clearlyWireless†.
- We look for the option “Wireless Statistics” .
- A list of the devices will appear and next to an option to “Deny” , we click on it and the device was immediately ejected.
Password protocol
An important alternative is to strengthen the password encryption protocol and convert it to WPA2.
We will perform these steps:
- We go to clearlyWireless†.
- We look for the “Wireless Security” option and click on it.
- We activate the first alternative, permittedWPA/WPA2†.
- In Wireless password we write a password that is strong, trying to include characters, numbers and uppercase and lowercase letters.
- We click on permittedSave†.
Disable WPS button
We can enter our WiFi network not only with the password, but also by activating this button. While it is true that, we have to be in the presence of the router many times it is advisable to reinforce security disable it completely.
Next, we will show you the following procedure:
- Enter permittedWPS†.
- Select “WPS Status” .
- Deactivate the option.
- We click on permittedSaveEND.
Change of SSID emission
The SSID is the name by which the WiFi network is identified and is available to all people close to the router . One way to increase security is to change the name, access password and leave it in invisible .
When we make this configuration the name of the network will not appear on the devices , and they will not be able to enter, even if they use applications that crack passwords.
If we want to configure these elements we will do the following guide:
- We go to accounWireless†.
- We deactivate the “SSID Broadcast” option.
- We change the name in “Wireless Network name” .
To change the password, we will do:
- We enter equallyTools•.
- We choose beforePasswordrd.
- At this moment we write the old data and enter the changes we will make.
- We click on respectivelyAccept ”.
Tips to improve the security of your WiFi network so you don’t steal Internet
Once we have identified the tools available to improve our WiFi security, it is advisable to follow the advice we will mention below so that the Internet is not stolen from us.
They are:
Change the SSID and factory password span >
Routers come with a factory default name and password, no matter how much we have acquired a neutral router or been delivered by our Internet service operator.
This data is available on the Internet and can be found on websites such as “Router Passwords Community Database” , where we will only enter the router’s mark and a 8-digit number with which we can try to access the WiFi network.
In addition, there are applications for mobile devices that use different PINs that are stored in their databases to carry out a massive attack on the router and, in this way, access it.
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When we change the name and password we will have prevented third parties from entering our network using this publicly available data.
Use Mac filtering h3>
This tool offered by the router cannot be deactivated if we want to maintain restricted access in the WiFi network .
Thanks to this filtering, it will be virtually impossible to access it , because the router will force the device to show its network card identification number.
Review device history h3>
With the statistics function we can see which are the devices that are connected at the time we conducted the study.
This instrument will allow us, in a very simple way, to know exactly all the members of the WiFi network and will allow us to expel them with very simple steps.
Use a strong encryption protocol
The stronger the encryption protocol, the harder it will be to access the network.
When we talked, in the previous points, that there are Internet sites and mobile applications that can crack the password, it is because they use PINs that can access the router, as long as the encryption be weak .
The most recommended protocols are in order of decreasing strength:
- WPA2 + AES
- WPA + AES
- WPA + TKIP + AES
- WPA
For all this, it is advisable to keep encryption in the highest protocols listed above.
Install a third-party app h3>
There are different applications in stores that can be installed on computers and mobile devices that will allow you to constantly inspect the network to which we are connected.
The most common are: