how would i go about securing my wireless network?

i just recently thought about this and since it's been months since i've been using my wireless network unsecured i think it's time to do something.

first, i'll explain how i connect to the net. i have the modem from my ISP and out of it there's a cable going to my router. then out of the router a cable goes to my girlfriends desktop (she'll soon switch to a laptop so i really need to figure this out) and i connect to the router through my laptop's in built wireless adapter.

while i never even considered this as an issue, i am sure it's for the better to to secure my wireless connection, especially since both my gf and i will soon be only using a wireless network.

i did search the almighty google for info on this but the results were unsatisfactory at best. the manufacturers website isn't even listing my router so no luck finding manual.


if i don't manage to find out how to do this, i guess we'll eventually just use cables to connect, but it's a hassle and there's tripping possibilities i need to consider.




any help on this would be awesome. btw, my router is an asus wl-520gc

Try posting here. They would be more helpful on the subject.

http://guildwarsguru.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=284

Configure your router to use a WPA key. Thats the simplest way to reach a reasonable level of security quickly.

how do i do that?

keep in mind i have no knowledge what-so-ever on this subject.

configuring my router to access the web is stupidly easy. you just press next, wait for the software to find the wireless connection, type a username and a password i was given by my isp when the connection is found and that's it.

Actually, WEP and WPA slow down gaming and occasionally cause disconnections. If you're logging into the router to configure such a thing, it is easier to simply turn on MAC address filtering. This allows you to specify which wireless devices can connect to your router, and it doesn't slow the connection by encrypting and decrypting data. You should only use encryption if there is confidential information being passed around, such as on a business network.

Oh and as a bonus, I have written a few tools for Debian Linux that allow me to crack any WEP network and various but not all types of WPA networks in ten minutes or less. Encryption is still encryption. If you cen encrypt it, you can decrypt it.

ok, i'll do that as i don't want my gaming and surfing (read downloading porn) to suffer. oh wait, i don't know how.

While it is true that encryption can slow down connection speed, it would only be a very small, unnoticeable amount.

I would definitely recommend encrypting your wireless connection with at least WEP, although WPA is recommended. A simple MAC filter is very easily fooled and I would not recommend just using that.

What slows down your connection even more while you are downloading porn, is when your neighbors are using your unsecured network to download porn.

I recommend using WPA or WEP, and having your neighbors come over to watch your downloaded porn together.

Who cares. Nobody is going to attack.

WEP is pretty much useless for wireless protection. WPA is better, WPA2 is best. I've always heard rumors on how it supposedly slows down data transfer, but I've never seen proof. As mentioned above by OneEyed, if it does it's so minor it's unnoticeable.

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Thizzle, if you can't contribute positively, don't post.

People do and will attack. Leaving yourself open is a big mistake which the OP knows. Being a bit paranoid is required for a safe computer, 'less you want to lose personal information.

OK, for starters, I'm assuming that this is just a home network, and you're mostly worried about wireless leeches. The steps below should be adequate to keep your network leech-free. You'd need to do a lot more if there was something on your network that made it an interesting target for a "real" hacker.

• Enable Encryption. WPA2 is preferred, followed by WPA, followed by WEP. WEP is fatally flawed, but your average leech lacks the wherewithal to look up and implement the hack.
• Enable MAC Filtering. Again, MAC filtering is fatally flawed as a defensive mechanism, but your average leech lacks the wherewithal to look up and implement the workaround.
• Disable "Broadcast SSID", then change the network name. The average leech lacks the wherewithal to look up how to locate a non-broadcasting network.
• Limit your DHCP pool to exactly the number of computers you will be attaching to the network, and set the IP assignment duration to the maximum. This should leave any leeches unable to obtain IP addresses from your router. And if they do somehow manage to force one, it should cause a telltale collision that will let you know they're there.

First: Your router has a webpage where you can alter all sorts of router settings, including your security settings (I'd advise doing as Chthon said) it should be located here (http://192.168.1.1/) for your router. Just type that in your browser's adress. If it has a generate hex key from a word or phrase I recommend you write down both the hex it generates (should look something like: DE-1F-...) and the word/phrase you entered as password.

Second: To find out what your MAC address is go here: https://forms.swlaw.edu/swlawforms/findmacaddress.htm

I get a better connection without any protection on, not that it makes a big difference because I have protection on, but it's still noticeable. I'm guessing you have a decent/expensive router were it wouldn't be so noticeable.

this is all very awesome that your taking the time to tell me what i should do, but nobody's saying HOW i should do it.

further more, upon going to http://192.168.1.1/ i get asked for a username and password, and the password isn't the default "admin" it is supposed to be. i remember i went to this first step while following a port forwarding tutorial, but i really do not remember changing that poassword.

this is begining to sound like a hackers movie of sorts.

The default setting should be, user: admin, password: password. Also look at the back of your router, there should be default login name there.

you're the best! it does show a default username and password. they were both admin, but i changed the password.

i took a look at it's settings. here's what it says under wireless: i'm posting it here since i really don't understand jack.


i tried changing the settings in the red box but upon the necessary save&restart of the router, the connection was refused, so i had to reconfigure the router to use it's default settings. now, i'm guessing i'm decently secure, since it says it's using a wpa encryption method. also, i think it's ok since "hide ssid" is checked "yes".

here's a screenshot of the settings: