network security

you move into a new home and buy a new

router to get super high speed internet

you change the default password on your

Wi-Fi network to your grandmother's

maiden name written in numbers don't

even ask voila you've done everything in

your power to protect your data after

all it's just your credit card numbers

bank records personal information.

so maybe it's worth investing some extra

time and money into your home network

security after all

step one will be rather physical no you

don't have to run around the house and

yell you won't get my data but you'll

need to move the router to the center of

your home

yep I know it belongs in the dark corner

but this way you're actually tempting

others to connect to your network if you

live in an apartment building those

others will be your neighbors to the

left and to the right behind shared

walls if you have a house of your own a

strong signal can go well beyond it

through closed windows and in theory

right into the car of a bad guy parked

outside

if this doesn't sound convincing enough

I guess you'll agree that a rotor in a

central location will at least make the

connection better around your home

are you using a firewall for your

connection it's that security device

that keeps track of your incoming and

outgoing Network traffic and doesn't let

suspicious data break through you might

have one of those on your laptop but the

software version only works for the

gadget it's installed on if you really

want to be sure your home network is

safe you might want to invest in a

hardware firewall

you put it behind the router and it

works as the first line of defense

against all evil it will protect your

network without using the resources of

your gadgets and slowing them down

never and I mean it never underestimate

the power of a strong password even if

you have a good one remember to update

it once every six months or so and know

your best friend's name your

grandmother's birthday and even

someone's phone number are not a good

idea if your creativity fails you use a

password generate or better yet a

password manager it's an encrypted

digital phone that can help you generate

really strong unique passwords and here

comes the best part you won't need to

remember them or physically store them

somewhere

and if you have a file name

passwords.docx somewhere in your system

with the keys to literally everything

you have online you know by now it

shouldn't be that way right

what's your Wi-Fi password and where's

the food are the two things most guests

want to know you can hand them the

hamburgers but don't rush to give them

all the Wi-Fi info you can create a

separate guest Network for your visitors

your friends won't try to break into

your system of course but you can't be

100 sure that all their gadgets are

malware free and if you check their

phones before they enter your house you

won't have that many friends left and oh

that guest network will also be perfect

for all your gadgets that connect to the

net Wi-Fi cameras thermostats smart

speakers you name it these guys are much

easier to break into than their smarter

peers like laptops or phones so it's

good to have them separated

it feels good to use the administrator

account to show them gadgets who the

boss is but you don't really need to do

it every time

when in this mode you can get access to

and alter all important files and

configurations on your system I know you

won't do it on purpose but malware might

sneak in and compromise your system and

you're just granting it the VIP pass

to avoid this create a less privileged

account for your everyday routine like

browsing the web checking your email and

creating files you can call it whatever

you're like even big boss to feel better

and remember only to use the

administrator one for installing

important updates and maintenance

so you've changed your Wi-Fi password

from the default one but your router has

its own login credentials to change your

router's admin name and password type

its IP address into the URL bar on your

laptop or use a special app for it and

because those default IP addresses are

easy to find for the bad guys you can

add one extra layer of protection and

change the router IP address too just

replace a couple of numbers in the

network settings in your router admin

console most routers let you access your

Wi-Fi network remotely from any location

where you can get an internet connection

it's cool to control your wireless

network like this but the problem is

that others can also access it

especially if you haven't changed the

default router name and password

so think twice if you really need to

have remote control over your network if

you can live without it just turn it off

in the settings

every now and then check the list of

devices connected to your home network

if something looks like it doesn't

belong there disconnect it immediately

and change the Wi-Fi password

you'll need to connect all of your

gadgets again after this reset and the

bad guys will have to go for good

sometimes a totally harmless and even

helpful devices like your robot vacuum

can have a weird mix of numbers and

letters for its name so if it stops

cleaning the room after your major

digital cleaning it's not because it

went on strike just say you're sorry and

welcome it back

make sure your router's firmware is up

to date

manufacturers don't create those updates

just to annoy you they actually find

ways to protect your Gadget from

prospective threats and Patch the

weaknesses in the existing system

most of those guys don't update

themselves automatically but you can

help them out

you'll find the updates on the

manufacturer's website there should also

be instructions on how to install them

check if the router has the latest

security protocol

if you shop for a new one yourself there

shouldn't be a mistake because they only

have those now but if you get one from

your provider insist that you only want

the latest safest option your security

cameras can ironically enough also be a

threat to your security the bad guys can

access them locally within a range of

the network the cam is connected to more

often they do it remotely though even if

the security company that Services your

cam has no data leakages someone can

break in using your password if you use

the same one for all your accounts

it's more likely to happen to older

gadgets that run on out-of-date software

so you might want to get a new camera

it's pretty much impossible to know if

your security camera has been messed

with unless you're a pro

one sign to look out for is when the cam

starts working slower or worse than

normal

most of those gadgets have limited

memory and when someone gets connected

to it it's poor Central processor has to

work extra hard so it can barely handle

the stress

you know how walls have ears well your

smart devices also have some solid

hearing abilities the ones equipped with

microphones can listen to your

conversations even when you aren't

actively using the device if someone

gets access to the device they'll also

get access to the information you share

so mind what you say when you're next to

audio recording toys home assistance and

other smart devices you can also mute

microphones when you aren't using them

cover the cameras on those gadgets with

cameras when you don't need to be seen

if you know you won't be using the

device for a while disconnect it from

the internet but remember to update it

when you need it again.