Setting up WiFi and securing it

GWC Community GWC Hive Mind
#1

hey everyone

got a new computer ordered and I’m thinking of getting an iPad so I want to get wifi set up in my place

does anyone have a nice guide on setting it up and securing it properly?

as for routers I’ve heard Linksys? I will be keeping some wired connections, to my 360 and one older computer that doesn’t have wifi built in, as well as to a couple Tivo’s that don’t have wifi built in either

#2

linksys is good, it’s the little brother of Cisco so is quite relaible.

Most of these router will NAT automatically, so you just plug the phone/broadband line in and off you go.

a wired/wireless router is fairly standard, you should limit the IP addresses you hand out to the number of devices you have plus maybe one or two for guests.

In terms of wireless aspects, it varies form router to router but most of them have an easy step by step set up wizard which will guide you thourgh the whole thing.

couple of tips

  1. shroud your SSID so others randomly searching cannot easily find it by just looking, once you know it that’s all that matters.
  2. usa WPA/TKIP security so that it’s hard to break, when you set the password make it at least 12-14 characters long, a schema i use is a word, a character (such as @ or % or &) another word and a number on the end. use upper and lower case in combination with this should make it harder to crack, not impossible, but difficult enough to discourage the average drive by hacker.
  3. proximity: place your router near both the phone line and the devices you’ll be connecting it in to, that way you’re not running cables everywhere, unless the devices are connecting wirelessly in which case you’re fine.

That’s all i can suggest right now until you get a specific combined wired/wireless ADSL device or I know more about you broadband configuration. if you’d rather not discuss such details in an open text searchable by google forum then pm me and I’ll do what I can for you.
Kind Regards,
Phaze
on the “I have set this up myself in assorted configs so have some experience to bring to the area, hence my long rambling post” ID

#3

Thanks Phazed, my new computer is due to arrive by the 19th, so starting tomorrow I’m going to narrow down the search for the router and hopefully order it either tomorrow or monday

#4

Phaze listed two good ways to secure your wireless router. In addition, I like to…

Limit connections by MAC address: There should be a setting somewhere where you can turn this on. It’s a pain when you want to add a new device but it does add a layer of security. If someone takes your iPad and learns its MAC address, they could spoof it and get on your network, but that would take a pretty concerted effort and if they can get your iPad you either know and trust them, or you have more to worry about!

EDIT

As to the specific router, I’ve had 2* Netgear WGT624s and really like their interface.

*The first one didn’t break. I lost it in the divorce. :slight_smile:

#5

I have to disagree with Phazedout and 5thHorseman – hiding your SSID and filtering based on MAC address may keep a neighbor from stealing your wifi but they’re both ineffective at deterring a determined hacker from sniffing your network traffic. For the strongest security, use either WPA2 or WPA with AES and choose a hard to guess passphrase – I’d recommend 12-16 characters with an upper case letter, number, and a symbol. TKIP is an older protocol that’s already had some vulnerabilities found in it and WEP is extremely broken.

#6

I take a different approach. I choose not to secure my wifi. This increases the burden on a media company making an infringement claim to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that it was MY computer downloading.

People who overly secure their networks may be setting themselves up.

As a side note, I use a firmware that allows me to keep an eye on bandwidth consumption just in case a neighbor goes nuts on my connection. Hasn’t happened yet, now on my 11th year of 802.11.

#7

Actually, neither of us suggested WEP.

(It is insecure, however)
(Anyone willing to hack encryption is willing to pick a lock on a house)
(obligatory xkcd)

#8

I agree with you Em. WPA or WPA2, w/pass phrase…a very long one (>25) with multiple instances of uppercase, lowercase and special characters. Or use a random password generator that you can set using all mention parameters, I use this one. Blocking your SSID from being broadcast is always a good idea…nothing will deter hackers from getting it altogether but it’s worth it to at least try. :slight_smile:

Em didn’t say that you or Phazedout did suggest it. Her first sentence is what she disagrees with. Second is what she recommends. Third is what she doesn’t recommend because they are craaaap. :wink:

Wifi hackers are too lazy to get out of their car to pick your lock…they don’t want your stuff, just your interwebz bandwidth.

#9

This is why you secure your Wireless connection to the interwebs:

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/world/51684084-68/wireless-homeowner-someone-internet.html.csp

#10

Relevant to your interests.

#11

A strong, random password is also a Good Thing™

I’ve used https://www.grc.com/passwords.htm for mine and I do recommend listening to the Security Now podcasts (available on the same site) for tips on security.