Inexpensive Wireless Networking Products, Case Study Example

Today, inexpensive wireless networking products are everywhere and they’re extremely easy to use. Since wireless networks are utilized throughout the world, there are many opportunities for home or office network intruders. While most people don’t give a lot of thought to securing their network, protecting computer information is easy to do.

Users should change the default password on the WLAN router as soon as it’s set up. Passwords should be on the more complicated side and not easy to figure out. Also, the SSID broadcast should be turned off, making the network invisible to others.

WiFi Protected Access (WPA) is great for protecting the WLAN. WPA won’t limit the access password to just letters or numbers. Windows XP has WPA support built in. If WPA isn’t an option, WEP encryption is still better than nothing, and the encryption keys should be changed regularly.

Some wireless routers have the option of reducing the signal range, limiting how far outside your home of office the signal will reach. This means that less outsiders will have the opportunity to hack into your information. Also, it’s best for remote administration to remain turned off. While “off” is usually the default setting, it should be double-checked. If this service is turned on, anyone can access your router.

MAC filtering can also help to monitor access. Turning on MAC filtering means that network access can be limited to only your systems or others that you know about. To use MAC filtering, the 12-character MAC address of each system must be entered into the router or AP. This option doesn’t guarantee safety, since MAC addresses can be imitated, but it does provide a barrier for intruders.