Securing Your Wireless Networking

In today’s wireless internet age, online theft happens on a too regular basis. This happens for a lot of reasons: employers or employees get careless when on company networks, more thieves are turning their attention to identity theft, and improperly secured wireless networking. Though you might love your employees to be mindful and alert while on the company’s wireless networking, you can’t assure they always will be. Likewise, you can’t always assume hackers will attack some other company’s insecure network. It is up to you to keep your network secure.

Disable WPS

If you own a small business, you might have a router that comes with WPS automatically enabled. WPS stands for Wi-Fi protected setup, but it is not nearly as protected or secure as using the original WPA2. WPS makes it easier for hackers to access your router because they only have to guess a 4-digit pin. Make sure to disable this feature and enable WPA2 when setting up your business’s wireless networking.

You can typically disable WPS and enable WPA2 by typing 192.168.1.1 into your web browser to access your router’s settings. Once you have done this, you will need to make a password for your router and enable WPA2.

Choosing the Right Password for Your Wireless Networking

The right password makes the difference between a vulnerable and a secure network. There are a few things to remember when creating a password.

• Make sure your password isn’t something easily guessed. Don’t choose anything having to do with you personally or your business. This will protect your network from a person who might know things about you.
• Make your passwords a long string of random words. These words should be truly random, with no rhyme or reason. This will protect your network from computer programs meant to guess passwords.
• Don’t use common phrases in your password. They can be common words, but the phrases together should be almost nonsensical.

Add MAC Address to Your Router

All Wi-Fi enabled devices have a unique MAC address that you can add to your router. This ensures that only those devices have access to your wireless networking. Though this is an added layer of security, here are ways for hackers to get around this. Make sure you take the security measures outlined above as well.

FX Technology Is Here for Your IT Management Needs

If you ever need help with your business’s IT management, the experienced team at FX Technology is here to help. We do so much more than wireless networking. We do all different types of small business IT support: VoIP services, managed security services, disaster recovery, and so much more.