Secure your Wi-Fi: Measures and countermeasures for everyone

Wireless networks (Wi-Fi) make it easy to access Internet from your computer, mobile phones, tablets and other wireless devices located anywhere in the home without the need for cables.
With traditional wired networks, it is extremely difficult to steal some internet connections, but the problem is with wireless signals as they can be intercepted by a neighboring building or by a car parked outside your apartment.

This practice, also known as piggybacking, can be detrimental for three reasons:

It will increase your monthly Internet bill especially when you pay byte for data transfer.
It will reduce your internet access speed by sharing the same connection with other users.
It can create security risks as you may lose files on your computers, or find your IP in the Electronic Crime Proofs for an attack you have not done.

• The malicious scenario: There have been several cases where innocent users have been arrested for sending emails from hacked email accounts through compromised wireless Wi-Fi networks they used at home. The Wireshark is a free Internet sniffing tool for Linux, Mac and Windows that can detect traffic streaming through a wireless network, including cookies, forms and other HTTP requests.

Wireless Wi-Fi Measures and Countermeasures

So below we will see how you can make your wireless network safe. We will see the security measures you should take, but also the countermeasures used by hackers to breach your network.

With regard to countermeasures now, there is plenty. We will only mention a few, what we consider to be the main one.

Change the router settings

You need to know how to access the settings of your wireless router through your browser. You can usually do this by entering the internal IP address "192.168.1.1" in the browser you are using. Next, you will need to enter the correct username and password to view the settings page. Names and passwords are different for each router, so you should check your router's user manual first.

You can also use Google to find the manuals for most online routers in case you miss the printed manual that came with the device you.

Alternatively, you can use the portable application (no installation required) Router Default Passwords that will display everything you need on your screen.

• Password: Frequent change helps secure?

The application works only on Windows. If you still can not find IP to log in, open the following list:

Router	Default IPs
2Wire	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.1 192.168.1.254 10.0.0.138
3Com	192.168.1.1 192.168.1.10.1
Actiontec	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.1 192.168.2.1 192.168.254.254
Airlink	192.168.1.1 192.168.2.1
Airlive	192.168.2.1
AirTies	192.168.2.1
Apple Lossless Audio CODEC (ALAC),	10.0.1.1
Amped Wireless	192.168.3.1
Asus	192.168.1.1 192.168.2.1 10.10.1.1 10.0.0.1
Aztech	192.168.1.1 192.168.2.1 192.168.1.254 192.168.254.254
Belkin	192.168.1.1 192.168.2.1 10.0.0.2 10.1.1.1
Billion	192.168.1.254 10.0.0.2
Buffalo	192.168.1.1 192.168.11.1
Card King	192.168.0.1
Cisco	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.30 192.168.0.50 10.0.0.1 10.0.0.2
D-Link	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.1 192.168.0.10 192.168.0.101 192.168.0.30 192.168.0.50 192.168.1.254 192.168.15.1 192.168.254.254 10.0.0.1 10.0.0.2 10.1.1.1 10.90.90.90
Edimax	192.168.2.1
Eero	192.168.0.1
Eminent	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.1 192.168.8.1
Gigabyte	192.168.1.254
Google	192.168.86.1 192.168.0.1
Hawking	192.168.1.200 192.168.1.254
Huawei	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.1 192.168.3.1 192.168.8.1 192.168.100.1 10.0.0.138
LevelOne	192.168.0.1 192.168.123.254
Linksys	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.1 192.168.1.10 192.168.1.210 192.168.1.254 192.168.1.99 192.168.15.1 192.168.16.1 192.168.2.1
Microsoft	192.168.2.1
Motorola	192.168.0.1 192.168.10.1 192.168.15.1 192.168.20.1 192.168.30.1 192.168.62.1 192.168.100.1 192.168.102.1 192.168.1.254
MSI	192.168.1.254
Netgear	192.168.0.1 192.168.0.227
NetComm	192.168.1.1 192.168.10.50 192.168.20.1 10.0.0.138
Netopia	192.168.0.1 192.168.1.254
Planet	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.1 192.168.1.254
Repotec	192.168.1.1 192.168.10.1 192.168.16.1 192.168.123.254
Senao	192.168.0.1
Siemens	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.1 192.168.1.254 192.168.2.1 192.168.254.254 10.0.0.138 10.0.0.2
Sitecom	192.168.0.1 192.168.1.254 192.168.123.254 10.0.0.1
SMC Networks	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.1 192.168.2.1 10.0.0.1 10.1.10.1
Sonicwall	192.168.0.3 192.168.168.168
SpeedTouch	10.0.0.138 192.168.1.254
Synology	192.168.1.1
Sweex	192.168.15.1 192.168.50.1 192.168.55.1 192.168.251.1
Tenda	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.1
Thomson	192.168.0.1 192.168.1.254 192.168.100.1
TP-Link	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.1 192.168.0.254
Trendnet	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.1 192.168.0.30 192.168.0.100 192.168.1.100 192.168.1.254 192.168.10.1 192.168.10.10 192.168.10.100 192.168.2.1 192.168.223.100 200.200.200.5
Ubiquiti	192.168.1.1 192.168.1.20
US Robotics	192.168.1.1 192.168.2.1 192.168.123.254
Zoom	192.168.1.1 192.168.2.1 192.168.4.1 192.168.10.1 192.168.1.254 10.0.0.2 10.0.0.138
ZTE	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.1 192.168.100.100 192.168.1.254 192.168.2.1 192.168.2.254
Zyxel	192.168.1.1 192.168.0.1 192.168.2.1 192.168.4.1 192.168.10.1 192.168.1.254 192.168.254.254 10.0.0.2 10.0.0.138

 

If you are looking for the default passwords for the web page settings page Router reset and PortForward.com will cover you.

Create a unique password for your router

Once you log in, the first thing you need to do to secure your network is to change your default password. Once you have found it, others can find it.

This will prevent others from accessing and you can keep the security settings you want. You can change the password from settings managements on the router settings page. The default values ​​are usually admin/password.

• The malicious scenario: There are many public databases that contain default usernames and passwords for wireless routers, modems, and other networking equipment. So anyone can find from such a database them factory your router settings. As long as it's connected to the same Wi-Fi, it can connect to one of the internal IPs we mentioned above. Your router's page mentions the manufacturer... so without delay it can also find the default username-password.

Change your network SSID

Το SSID (ή το όνομα ασύρματου δικτύου) του ασύρματου router σας είναι συνήθως προκαθορισμένο σαν “προchoice” από την εταιρεία κατασκευής, ή από την εταιρεία διάθεσης της γραμμής σας (πχ CYTA5BFV, ή Fortnet-*). Η αλλαγή του ονόματος SSID δεν θα κάνει το δίκτυό σας πιο ασφαλές, ειδικά να χρησιμοποιήσετε σαν όνομα δικτύου το όνομα, τη διεύθυνση κατοικίας σας ή άλλες προσωπικές σας πληροφορίες. Κατά καιρούς έχω συναντήσει SSID που είναι αριθμοί mobile, names etc.

• The malicious scenario: Wi-Fi scanning tools like inSSIDer (Windows) and Kismet (Mac, Linux) are free and allow anyone who wants to find all available wireless networks in an area even if the routers do not transmit their SSID name.

Enable network encryption

To prevent other computers in the area from using an Internet connection, you need to encrypt the wireless signals.

There are various encryption methods for wireless settings, such as: WEP, WPA (WPA-Personal), and WPA2 (Wi-Fi Protected Access version 2).

WEP is a very basic encryption and is thus less secure (it can be easily broken, but it is compatible with most devices.) WPA2 encryption is safer but only compatible with 2006-built hardware.

To enable encryption on your wireless network, open security settings what? wireless function on your royter configuration page. From there, you can usually choose which security method you want to use. Of course, if your equipment is not old, use WPA2. Choose a hard password using a combination of letters, numbers, and special characters.

• The malicious scenario: AirCrack and coWPAtty are some free tools that even allow non-hackers to crack WEP / WPA encryption (PSK) using a brute force dictionary or techniques. A YouTube video shows that AirCrack can also be used to break the encryption of WiFi via jailbraked iPhone.

Watch the video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4R69KLYC7bg

Filter MAC addresses

All your wireless devices have a unique MAC address (it has nothing to do with Apple's Macs). Imagine the MAC address as the unique IP address each computer that is connected to the Internet.

As an additional means of protection, you can add the MAC addresses of all the devices you use to your wireless router settings. This allows only certain devices to connect to the Wi-Fi network.

MAC addresses are encoded in networking equipment. Unfortunately, tampering with a MAC address is possible, but the attacker should first know one of the MAC addresses of computers that are connected to your wireless network before attempting to forge.

To enable MAC address filtering, first create a list of all the devices you want to connect to your wireless network. Find their MAC addresses, and then add them to the MAC address filters in your router settings.

To find the MAC address on your computers, open the Command Prompt and type the following command:

ipconfig / all

The command will display your MAC address next to the name "Physical Address". You can find the MAC addresses of the cordless cell phones and other portable devices used in the network settings.

• The malicious scenario: One can change the MAC address of his computer and can easily connect to your network, since your network allows you to connect from devices that have that particular MAC address. Anyone can identify your device's MAC address wirelessly using a sniffing tool like Nmap, and then change its MAC address using another free tool such as MAC Shift.

Reduce the range of the wireless signal

If your wireless router has a long range but your apartment is small, it would be advisable to reduce the signal bandwidth either by changing your router's function to 802.11g (instead of 802.11n or 802.11b) or by using a different wireless channel.

You can also try placing the router under the bed to limit the direction of the signals somewhat.

Alternatively, let us mention Paint Anti-Wi-Fi: Researchers have developed a special color that prevents Wi-Fi and can help you stop neighbors from accessing your home network without having to set anything on your router. The color contains chemicals that block radio signals by absorbing them.

"With the entire room covered, Wi-Fi signals cannot enter and cannot leave."

Upgrade it firmware of your router

You should occasionally check the manufacturer's page to make sure your router is running with the latest firmware that is being released.

Connect to your secure wireless Wi-Fi network

To complete, MAC address filtering along with WPA2 encryption (AES) and a very complex password is probably the best way to secure your wireless network.

Once you've enabled the above security settings on your wireless router, you must add the new settings to your computers or other wireless devices that you can use to connect to your secure Wi-Fi. You can choose to automatically connect to the network without having to type the password each time.

Who is connected to your wireless network

If you are concerned that a stranger is connected to your wireless network, try AirSnare. It is a free utility that will look for unexpected MAC addresses on your wireless network as well as DHCP requests.

Another option is to open your router's management page (using 192.168. *) And look for the DHCP Clients Table. From there, you'll see a list of all the computers and wireless devices that are connected to your home network.

in addition to

Turn off your router completely when you are not planning to use the computer for a long time. You will save energy and the door will be closed 100% for piggybackers.

To allow a new device to be connected to your network, you need to find the device's MAC address and add it to your router. So if a friend wants to connect, you can give him access. Remove its MAC address from your router settings after disconnecting it.