Wireless Router Settings

The subject of wireless router settings came up in class a while back so I figured I'd post some easy settings you can change to secure your wireless router far beyond the default configuration. Any one in particular is helpful, all of them together are exponentially so.

Change the default SSID and password -
Changing the default SSID makes it harder for tech-savvy users that are within range of your network to find out what brand of wireless router you are using. Router manufacturers typically use a common default password for their products. Chances are, if you haven't changed the default SSID, you haven't changed the default password either. This is very common knowledge and there are even websites dedicated to publishing this information, such as www.routerpasswords.com/, making this a very valid potential risk.

Enable stronger encryption -
Most routers will probably come with some level of encryption already enabled, most likely WEP. The problem is, by today's standards, WEP is garbage. On average, I'd say it takes 15 minutes for someone who wants in to crack WEP, and that's being generous. Granted, for someone skilled who really wants on your network in particular, they're going to get in anyway. However, by implementing stronger encryption like WPA2, it would prolong the process much more and would likely detour who's looking for free WiFi; especially when your neighbor is using default settings.

Disable SSID broadcast -
When you look at the available wireless networks you have the option of connecting to, you're viewing the networks that wish to have their existence known, not necessarily all the wireless networks within range. By default, most/all wireless access points will broadcast their SSID, making it easier for you to identify your network and connect to it. If you disable the broadcast of your SSID, you require that a user manually type in the SSID and passphrase/password, making your WLAN invisible to most and that much harder to figure out.

MAC address filtering -
Most wireless routers come with a feature that lets you add the MAC addresses of the wireless devices you own to a table and then allow only those devices to connect wirelessly. This is very effective in most cases but, like all other security measures, can be overcome if the right person wants in bad enough.

Hope this helps!