How to Keep Your Home Wi-Fi Safe From Hackers

Home is where unlimited and uninterrupted internet browsing is - a place where you can Netflix and chill to your heart’s content. The device that ensures that your internet activity is unceasing and fast is your home router.

We are now in the age of constant connectivity and with that comes constant risk of falling victim to cyberthreats. An individual’s home router, if compromised, can act as a gateway to a treasure trove of personal and sensitive information to cybercriminals. What is more, it can also lead to the ever-dreaded scenario of being disconnected from the internet. It is therefore, essential that you keep your home routers and by extension your Wi-Fi connection safe from attackers.

Router security vulnerabilities

Historically, routers have been one of the most commonly targeted devices by cybercriminals. Over the past few years hackers have managed to enslave thousands of routers to create powerful DDoS botnets, such as Mirai, that are capable of conducting massive and destructive cyberattacks.

Protect your router by replacing default credentials

All routers come with default usernames and passwords that help you connect to the internal portal that allows you to make configuration changes. In most cases, both the default username and password is set as “admin”.

This makes it incredibly simple for attackers to compromise a router. However, replacing the default credentials with unique and strong credentials can help ensure that your router is safe from being hijacked by hackers.

It is also recommended that you change your Wi-Fi password every once in a while. Since it has now become common practice to share home Wi-Fi passwords with friends and neighbors, it is always prudent to keep changing your Wi-Fi password. Both your router and Wi-Fi password should be strong and unique so as to ensure that an attacker can’t brute-force it.

Update your firmware

Routers are plagued by security flaws, which make them vulnerable to attacks. It is important that users ensure that their routers are regularly updated. A simple update can help block an attacker’s attempt to compromise your router.