How You Can Secure a Wi-Fi Network

Wi-Fi is the latest technology and the ease of Wi-Fi networks make it very popular among people in no time. In last decade Wi-Fi become most popular term for who uses computers. Wireless Networks rapidly marketed, adopted and deployed by organizations and individuals

Wireless Network allows freedom from cables and you can roam round in house and your office and especially in big work spaces you can easily use wireless network. As far as wireless security concerns, wireless does not offer protection of wired network by default. In wire network you can easily trace out any kind of interference but in wireless network you did not know who is in your network paradigm and is very easy for hacker to access networks because wireless radio wave signals are all over your premises and can easily tap, a person tap your signal of your wireless device nearby your building or car parking lot or in any hidden building part.

This technology popular very rapidly so no one thinks about security issue because people think functionality first and security second. Awareness and installation expertise are not very high and this is the main cause of un-secured networks. People buy a wireless router and establish a network, did not use encryption and make their network an un-secured network.

Wireless network device signal are easily identified by any mobile or computer device and if your network have no encryption, your network is on stake. Without encryption every one can see and get the data you are sending and receiving.

Biggest reasons of hacking wireless networks are the default setting and physical installation of wireless routers. Default settings can easily accessible by any person, people left same user name and passwords as like company default. If your network router is physically accessible by any person, it is possible any one could reset its setting to default and can access your network. Never left your Identifiers (SSID’s) left as default device settings and allow it to broadcast signals. Lack of implemented security means easy network access by unauthorized persons.

Let’s see how we can fix un-secured network access.

1. If you are new to wireless networking then go for WEP security settings and these setting your can found in your wireless router setup. You can easily access router setup by typing default IP address of router. Mostly router uses IP address “192.168.0.1”, after router shall ask you a user name and password. Write default username and password and now you are in security settings. First of all change your user name and password and keep write them on a safe place. Now you can setup your WEP setting and write a phrase in WEP setting. Make it 128bit and save your settings and logout. Restart your router and now your router is ready and secured. When you access your network it will ask you the WEP key or phrase, enter key or phrase you have given in router setup and your PC/Laptop/Mobile shall connect your wireless router. Keep save your phrase and key don’t share it with other people.

2. WEP is a primary level security and be break easily by any expert wireless hacker but it is better than nothing. If you are implementing wireless network in your professional environment you must choose WPA/WPA2 network encryption. These are much better encryption algorithms and not easy to break and sniff.

3. SSID rename and hiding is good for network security. If you hide your SSID it will not discoverable by ordinary discovering devices. If you rename and hide your SSID it will need to configure manually and that will be difficult for hack by unknown person.

4. Mac Address filtering is good if you have not guests in your networks. You can add Mac Addresses of your all network devices which are part of network and then you can block any other Mac address.

5. Advance Measures include 802.1X and device authentication also can make possible network security.

All of the above security measure did not guarantee you a 100% hack proof wireless network but it is always better than nothing.