Wired networks are fairly secure in that a computer must be physically present on the network in order to gain access to it. However, once the network is connected to the Internet, security is compromised. Now that wireless technology has arrived, networks are at even greater risk for intruders. All a computer needs is a wireless adapter and it can connect to an unsecured wireless network without your knowledge. Imagine a hacker driving around your neighborhood in search of wireless home networks. Is yours at risk?
If your wireless network is current unsecured, it’s critical to secure it. Hackers may not be driving around your block - but they could! In addition, do you want your neighbors using your wireless Internet access or poking through your computer’s hard drive?
Fortunately, it’s not terribly difficult to secure your wireless home network. You may need your wireless router’s manual though as the steps may be slightly different depending on the type of router you have.
Ideally, you’ll use the router’s software to set up and secure your network. For example, if you have a Linksys router, you’ll open your Web browser and type in the router’s IP address (usually 192.168.15.1). This will open a utility for managing the router. From there, you can set up the wireless security options.
Wireless routers allow you to name the network (which is the SSID), broadcast the SSID, set a network channel, and choose an encryption type such as WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access) or WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy). Other advanced settings are also available including Web filters and authentication type.
At a minimum, you should secure your network using WEP or WPA encryption. WPA is more secure. Your router should have several different security options with different encryption levels.
Once you’ve selected an encryption type, you’ll be prompted to create a “shared key” which is essentially a password and then setup the computers on the network with the appropriate settings for connecting. When securing your network, you should write down these shared keys in your router’s manual as they can be quite lengthy and nearly impossible to remember, especially if you’re using 128 bit encryption with 26 hexadecimal digits.
You can take the wireless security to the next level by entering in the Mac addresses for each approved computer and restricting all other devices from connecting to your network.
Once you’ve secured your network, you can rest easy knowing that you’ve made it much harder for hacker’s to break past your firewall. While you’ve done your part, understand that where there’s a will, there’s a way. Worms, downloading Trojans, and other malicious programs can still exploit your system. Securing the wireless network is the first step. Adding Internet security software is the next.
Celeste Stewart | July 7th, 2008
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