Wi-Fi systems are quite prone to getting hacked, if proper security measures are no taken and most of the time people are lazy with the security configurations, thus creating potential risk factors for their networks. It takes some amount of time and patience to configure Wi-Fi network securities, however, it does pay off in the end. Here are a few tips that if implemented, you could protect yourself against Wi-Fi hack.
Create Administrator Passwords: Wi-Fi networks use special equipments to be set up and web pages are made that enables users to login to their networks, but these webpages provide default login names, which is usually known by hackers, thus, it is very important that you change the administrator words and passwords as soon as you get access to the network.
WPA/WEP Encryption: Wi-Fi equipments are usually encrypted and the encryption helps the system to be protected and it cannot be read by humans.
Therefore it is important that strong encryption technology be used, and when a lowest common denominator is chosen all the devices on the network starts sharing the same encryption settings,thus protecting the network. Do not make the mistake of keeping the encryption in off state.
Making a New SSID: All access points use their own specified network names, normally called as the SSID set. One of the main ways to protect your network is to change the default SSID as the default name is known by many people and thus the system seems to be vulnerable to being attacked. If the SSID is not changed, the devices on the network could be in danger of being accessed.
MAC Address Filtering: Wi-Fi gadgets have a MAC address to them which is actually the physical address and this address is tracked by all access points and routers. Some products provide the benefit of giving a key to an owner that protects their devices and allows only the devices connected by those MAC addresses to be used. However MAC addresses can be faked very easily, so do not depend on them entirely.
Enable Firewalls: Firewalls are quite necessary for routers and most of them have it built in. Always make sure that the firewalls are enabled. For more safety you can also have firewall programs that provide extra connection to the computers.
Turn Networks Off When Not In Use: When you do not the network for a long time, ensure that it is switched off as that will prevent hackers from attacking the system when least expected. Do this specially in the case when you go for a vacation or will not be accessing the devices for a long time to come.
