How To Perform Home Network Security [Complete Guide]

A network comprises two or more computational systems connected by physical or wireless connections. Home network security refers to protecting the network which connects the devices such as computers, smartphones, wifi, and routers within a home. It includes securing connected network infrastructure from the core to the edge of a network perimeter. This is typically managed by a network administrator or network security. The cybercriminals found out tremendous different loopholes in one’s system and try manipulating the network traffic. They further try confiscating the confidential information of the devices connected to the network and could also install bugs and cookies in the devices which may corrupt them permanently.

This involves implementing the IT security policy and deploying the network software and the hardware to protect the network and its infrastructure from all the traffic from the external cyber-attacks. These cybercriminals target the networks which consist of vulnerabilities that act as open doorways for the cybercriminals to enter the network. Hence, our home networks need to be as secure as possible so that the cybercriminals find absolutely no vulnerabilities in your network and have no access to the confidential information of the devices connected to the network. Network security also protects all IT assets and resources from any unauthorized access.

Worry not. We will tell you. We, in this manuscript, have listed down 7 possible ways to maximize your network security. By implementing these alternatives, you can easily secure your home network from cybercriminals and enjoy using your internet without any apprehension.

What Are Network Threats?

When we talk about network security, it becomes very important to know the threats of a network and what threat network security can prevent. Following are the most common threats to the network:

Spyware
Adware
Botnets
Computer worms
Trojan horses
Malware
Distributed denial-of-service attacks (DDoS)

Taking care of your home network security and having awareness about network security is very important. Most of us do not care about this, or we can say that we do not know about this most of the attacks are not personal in nature. Learn about Western Digital router login here.

They can occur on any type of network that network can be big network or small network or a home or business. We should always remember that if a network connects to the internet, it becomes more vulnerable to outside threats, which can cause a great loss.

How To Perform Home Network Security

You may be wondering how to secure wifi? How to secure a home network? In this manuscript, have listed down some possible ways to maximize your network security. By implementing these alternatives, you can easily secure your home network for cybercriminals and enjoy using your internet without any apprehension.

Updating The Software Regularly

One of the most effective ways to make your network secure is to update your software regularly. Updating your software regularly will improve the overall cybersecurity posture of your home network.

Changing Your Router Password

The router is a gateway between your home network and the outside world i.e. the internet. Hence, it is very important to protect it with a strong password as it is the password to your Wi–fi network. This password can provide overall control of your home network security to an unauthorized person if leaked. It is very common for people to keep the default password of the router unchanged. This password is weak and hackers can easily predict them.

Hence, you need to change the default password to something which cannot be found easily by the hackers. Avoid setting common passwords like your name, family names, sports names, seasons, or birthdates. These passwords are predictable and can be easily guessed by hackers. Try keeping your password as unpredictable as possible. Our suggestion would be using a phrase or even lyrics of a song which means something to you and which you probably wouldn’t forget. This way the password will be unique and hence unpredictable.

See also: Arris Router Login

Using WPA2 Encryption For Home Network Security

There are multiple encryption languages available for wireless networks such as WEP, WPA, WPA2, Mixed mode, etc. It is highly recommended for the Wi–fi networks to use WAP2 (Wi–fi Protected Access 2) language. WAP2 is a security protocol used for encryption. It is a replacement for WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) and an update for 1st version i.e.

WAP. WAP@ is the current standard for encryption languages in the industry right now. All the Wi–fi routers are compatible with WAP2. We strongly advise switching to WPA2 if your home network security is using WEP or WPA.

Obscuring Your SSID

SSID is the name of your network in effect. Most people recommend hiding your SSID. But this provides a very weak form of protection to home network security and is very easy to crack it. Whether or not you choose to hide your SSID, you should think very carefully about what it says about identifying you.

home security protecting — protecting home security

Hence, the use of your family name in it, the name of your property, or even just leaving it by default representing who your service provider is can help a hacker find a flaw in your network or indeed find more information about yourself and put it together network traffic. Our recommendation would be to use maybe a random name from the dictionary which means something to you. This name would hence be unpredictable to the hacker.

Adjusting Factory Default Configuration

Most of the software and hardware products comes with factory default configurations, which are not a friend for network security.

Turning Off WPS

Our next recommendation would be to turn off WPS technology. This technology was brought in for convenience so that you can click the button on your router and create a false connection effectively for a new device to connect to the home network security . Often, there is no need for a lot of new devices to connect to your home network to make it worthwhile.

From the hacking perspective, WPS is the fastest and easiest way into the network is the exploit WPS technology. So, unless you have a really strong need for a lot of devices to connect to your network regularly, we strongly advise you to turn this feature off.

See also: Linksys Router Login

Turning Off Remote Management

This recommendation shouldn’t apply to most of people. Remote management is a feature that is usually turned off by default in the home network security. People usually turn this feature on to potentially log in to the network to tweak things while they are at work or on another site. It is rare for people to use this feature.

But there are occasions when people turn it on unnecessarily. It creates exposure for the hackers and they get easy access to brute force your network. Hence, it is strongly recommended to turn this feature off.

Remove Unnecessary Services And Software

The software and services which are unused or unwanted can cause network problems and get attached to your home network. To reduce this network attack, you should remove the unnecessary services in software from your device for home network security.

Using Unique And Strong Passwords

You should always choose a strong password. This will reduce the chances of network attacks and to help secure the home network on your devices.

In addition to this, you should always take care that you do not use the same password or similar password for your multiple accounts.

Never Use The Default Login Password And Username

Most of the sites offer you a default login option. They are pre-configured with this option. You should reduce using this default login option for your system as these are not secure.

Install A Network Firewall

To defend yourself against external threats, you should install a firewall. The fire can help you in blocking malicious traffic from entering your home network and will also alert you about any dangerous activity.

Run Up-To-Date Antivirus Software For Your PC Or Device

To secure the network, you should use a reputable antivirus software application on your device. It is an important protective measure that can be taken against malicious threats.

As antivirus software will automatically detect various types of malware, worms, viruses, and ransomware.

Back-Up Data On A Regular Basis

You should backup your data on a regular basis to minimize the impact if the data is lost, corrupted, stolen, or infected by your device.

Also, you should take care of increasing your wireless security by using the strongest encryption protocol or by changing the router’s default administrator password.

Considering MAC Filtering

Our last recommendation would be to consider MAC filtering for home network security. This is a list of devices that can connect to your network. And any device that is not on this list would not be able to connect even if it has the correct password to do so. If you don’t tend to add new devices to your network regularly, we would strongly advise you to use this feature because of the protection it potentially offers.

But it will depend on how often you introduce new devices and just how easy your router makes it for adding new devices to the MAC filter list.

See also: Dlink Router Login

Conclusion

It is not very hard to perform all these measures. These will give you long time security and will also secure network connections. By taking care of these small tasks, you can achieve home network security effectively. By taking all these measures or by keeping care of your network, you will keep yourself away and far from the network threats and have secured wireless networks.

Seth Myers

Seth Myers is a 26-year-old hardware expert who enjoys badminton, cycling and watching television. He is kind and fun, but can also be very hardworking and a bit lazy. In his free time he loves binge-watching boxed sets.

Contents

1 What Are Network Threats?
2 How To Perform Home Network Security
3 Conclusion