Protect Your Home from Cybercriminals
Most households now run wireless networks of devices linked to the internet. To protect these devices and your home from cybercriminals, you must ensure that your wireless network is secure.
An example of a common threat to your home networks is piggybacking. Piggybacking occurs when cybercriminals in your area connect to your wireless network. This can lead to bandwidth shortages and any illegal activity will be traced back to your internet connection. If your wireless network is not secured, cybercriminals may access files on your computer, install malware or even take control of your computer.
To secure your wireless network and prevent these threats to your home network, follow these tips:
- Make your wireless network invisible. Identifier broadcasting allows wireless devices to detect your home network as a potential access point. To disable this default option and make your network invisible to others, consult your router's user manual.
- Change the router's name and password. Change your router's default service set identifier (SSID) to a name that can't be easily guessed. Create a strong password for your router.
- Encrypt your network traffic. Review your security options and choose the highest level of encryption available. Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) and WPA2 are more secure than Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP).
- Use file-sharing with caution. If you don't need to share files on your network, disable file-sharing on all your computers. Otherwise, create a single dedicated directory for file-sharing and set a strong password for it.
We are here to help if you have any security questions regarding your SFB accounts. Visit an SFB office or contact Customer Service at 888-254-0615.
