When setting up equipment for a home security wireless network most people rush through installing it in order to get their internet connectivity up and running as fast as possible. This can be quite risky with several security problems as a result. The Wi-Fi in security products are partly to blame for that as configuring the numerous security features is often far from intuitive and can be confusing at times. This makes configuring a home security wireless quite a time consuming task.
The heart of a home security wireless network is its router. In order to setup the network manufacturers provide WebPages called a user interface, which allows the owner to setup the network address and other required information. This interface usually is protected by a login screen to allow only authorized people to change the settings. Unfortunately the login information by default is simple and often well known in the hacker community, so it is advised to change these settings immediately.
All wireless equipment comes with support for encryption. This technology encodes data sent through wireless networks so it is not easy to intercept and read it. This encryption comes in several types and naturally the strongest one should be selected that will work with your home security wireless system. For this to work, all wireless equipment in the network must use the same type of encryption at the same settings. This means that the strongest encryption type on the router is not necessarily the one you can use.
All Wi-Fi equipment comes with a unique ID called a MAC address. Your router keeps track of all MAC addresses of all devices connected to it so the owner of the network has the option to connect to a device simple by entering the MAC address in order to only allow those devices to connect, excluding every other wireless device. This may seem like a bulletproof security measure, but looks can be deceiving. For a hacker with the right software it is easy to fake a MAC address.
All routers come with a network name called an SSID. Most manufacturers use a system to generate such an SSID and again this is also well known within the hacker community so it is recommended to change the SSID immediately.
By itself knowing the SSID will not compromise your home security wireless network but it is a start. When someone finds a default SSID, it is a sure sign of a poorly configured and protected network. This serves almost like an invitation to a hacker to attempt to gain access to the network.
In a typical home security wireless network the router broadcasts its SSID to let the devices know it is available to connect to. On a home security network this feature called broadcasting should be switched off. As stated above in a wireless security network an allowed list where the MAC address of the individual devices are listed makes sure which device can connect. Broadcasting this information is therefore unnecessary and just another security risk and should be turned off.
These are just a few of the many attention points one should consider when configuring a Wi-Fi home security network, in order to do it the right way. Keep in mind that while setting up things in a hurry might save you time at that moment, but could be cause for a whole range of security problems along the way. |