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Why you should secure your wireless network
By Steven Dale of New Beltane Tech Media Ltd
Recently a German court fined a German citizen for not having a secure wireless network at his home. A musician had sued the householder because his network had been used by illegal file and music downloaders. Although a similar case hasn't yet occurred in the UK, a past case had similar ramifications. When an individual used someone else's wireless network without their permission, they were fined £500 and given a suspended sentence back in 2005. The fact that they had been able to do so only because the owner had not secured their network was not dealt with by the court. However, that was five years ago and who is to say that in future you won't find yourself in trouble with the courts or authorities for not having a secure wireless network? So, how do you secure your wireless network?
The best security for a wireless network is not to have one in the first place! Sounds nonsensical I know, but let me elaborate. Ask yourself... do you really need a wireless network? Most routers these days are wireless but that doesn't mean you have to use the wireless facility. Many people use just one computer and often it's located very close to the router, especially if it's a desktop. In such a situation, it's far better to connect to the router via Ethernet and switch off the wireless function. You will get a better connection with no drop-outs or interference and best of all it's totally secure. Even if you computer is located some distance from the router, if it's in a semi-permanent location you can always run the Ethernet cable along the wall to your computer desk. If the router and PC are in different rooms you can always use Powerline adapters. A pair of these plugged into your standard electrical outputs will allow you to connect your PC to the router with Ethernet cables. Once again, this will be much more secure than using a wireless network and should provide up to 85 Mbps of bandwidth. This s better than the average wireless network, which will operate at around 54 Mbps at maximum and more like 11 Mbps in practice. However, if you operate more than one computer in the home or use a laptop (and maybe other devices such as an iPod Touch or iPhone) then you will need a wireless network. In this case, you need to take steps to secure your network. In the early days of wireless networks, the only security protocol widely available was WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy). Introduced in 1997 the intention was that it would provide the equivalent security of a wired network, hence the name. However, within a few years it was evident that it wasn't that secure and certainly not as secure as a wired network. It is possible to crack it within a few minutes with widely available software and a standard wireless adapter. Although there are several aspects to WEP that its probably worth knowing, this article will not cover them. Our main focus is on making your wireless network secure and WEP is definitely not the way to go. So, if WEP is the wrong way to do it, what is the right way? Well, WPA/WPA2 is, for most folk, the appropriate way to achieving a high level of wireless network security. WPA stands for Wi-Fi Protected Access and WPA2, introduced in 2004, is the accepted standard to qualify for Wi-Fi Certification. Using a more secure method of encryption, all modern routers will come with this as an option and it should be the option chosen by most people. You configure your security settings either through the router's configuration page (in a browser by typing in an IP address) or by using a button on the router. This latter method is usually called Wi-Fi Protected Setup and is now the industry standard method to simplify the security setup and management of the Wi-Fi networks. You can use either Personal Information Number (PIN) or Push Button Configuration (PBC) method. Either way, it can be much easier than previous methods but retains the benefit that its is highly secure, using as it does the WPA2 protocol. So, if you are intent on using a wireless network, then ensure its secured using the WPA/WPA2 protocol and that all computers using the network have up to date security software (anti-virus and anti-spyware) installed. Of course, its critical too to never divulge your network passwords or PIN (if using WPS) to anyone.
A keen photographer who has worked as a freelance photographer in the past for "Professional Nurse" journal and other clients. Many years experience of using cameras (both film and digital) in several formats, of developing my own negatives and printing my own images. Works exclusively with digital and computer graphics software. Something of a gadget freak - loves the Gadget Show (UK TV show), BBC's Click and similar programmes. As a child my fav show was 'Tomorrow's World", all about future technology. Run my own IT and Media company, providing IT and media services. The UK distributor of the hField Wi-Fire High Gain Antenna.
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