It is just as important to make sure that your home network is secure, as it is the network you use at work. Consider this – your home network is what you use when you are away from the office. You likely plug in your work laptop and access sites that are not protected by the business proxy. The next day, you likely take the laptop back to work. This chain of events has the potential to introduce quite a bit of risk to your organization.
However, securing your home network is not only beneficial for work purposes. With proper security, you will also be able to safeguard your personal information and ensure you don’t become a victim of identity theft.
Some helpful tips that will work to improve the security of your existing home network can be found here.
Use WPA2 and a Strong Password at Home
It is essential to avoid open wireless networks unless there is absolutely no other option. When you use open networks, you should use a VPN to protect your data while it is in transit. There is no reason that you should leave your home wireless network open since encryption is built into all standard Wi-Fi routers. Also, the Wi-Fi protected Access 2, commonly referred to as WPA2, needs to be utilized since it is considered the most secure type of wireless protocol that is available for use at home.
In addition to enabling the encryption, you need to create and use a strong password. This should not be something that is too difficult to remember, or that is so complex it has to be written down. When trying to create a strong password, remember, it comes down to entropy. This means the longer the password you create, the safer you will be.
Change Default Router Settings and Passwords
There is no argument here – changing the settings and passwords is something you just need to do. This is the first thing that any penetration tester will try when they are connected to a wireless network. If they are able to log into the administrative interface with a default or easily guessed password, they will be able to get in. This is true for default settings, as well.
In addition to passwords, which need to be changed for obvious reasons, the primary setting that is a concern is the default IP address. In most cases it is fixed to 192.168.x1, which makes it easy for exploit kits to break into. Simply altering the IP address to any other combination will help to enhance the security of your router, as well as your entire home network.
Disable Remote Access
There are some routers that allow remote access to a home network. This can be extremely dangerous, especially if you never changed the default passwords. Once someone is able to access the router remotely, they can access systems and sniff traffic on your internet network from any location around the world. This is why you should also disable remote access to your home network.
When you take the time to learn how to protect your home network, it will benefit you in a number of ways. If you are unsure of how to do this, you can easily contact the technicians from Teague Security for help and advice.