It’s not even been a couple of decades since the advent of the Internet. Yet, this technological innovation has spread across all walks of life. And these days, it’s not about helping people to get access to Internet. It’s more about offering internet in the most user-friendly manner. People prefer to get the best Wi-Fi connection free of cost from different business owners. And it’s not that difficult either. Even small businesses can set up Wi-Fi hotspots and offer free Wi-Fi to their customers. And this free Wi-Fi is likely to boost the business prospects.
Wi-Fi hacking is an issue that small businesses need to control properly. They have to be wary of their Wi-Fi services being hacked. Hence, they need to secure the services properly. There are easy ways to do that though. Below are some of the most effective and not-so-difficult ways.
Tactics to Secure Business Wi-Fi
Choosing the Right Security Option is Important
When you have a small business Wi-Fi, securing it will be of utmost importance. The first thing that you need to do is to decide what type of security you want for it. Some of the different kinds of security options that you might have while using small business Wi-Fi include:
- WEP
- WPA
- WPA2
It is always advisable to avoid WEP, as it is not extremely strong in terms of offering protection from Wi-Fi hackers. There are benefits (PDF) of using WPA2 encryption for your Wi-Fi network for small business.
However, you can use both WPA and WPA2 for security purposes. This is likely to confuse the hackers and make it more difficult for them to crack through your WiFi network. These encryptions should be installed in the access points of Wi-Fi in the network.
Select Unique SSID Name and Password
The default Service Set Identified (SSID) name and password of a Wi-Fi network is usually easily cracked by hackers. To secure business Wi-Fi and get rid of this problem, hiding the SSID name can come in handy. You can also change the SSID name and password. While doing it, ensure that you choose something unique for this purpose. This will make it difficult for hackers to get hold of the network.
It’s always better not to use common SSID names, such as Admin or something like that. Hackers are aware of this trend and it does not take much time for them to enter such a network. You should try to think of some unique name. Besides, the password should have different types of characters, such as alphabetic, numerical, special characters, and so on. This will help to make it stronger and difficult for hackers to crack.
Disable Remote Login for Your Wi-Fi Network
Does your Wi-Fi network allow remote login? It can be one of the best ways for you to control the network by not even touching the router. But did you know that it can pose a threat for your Wi-Fi security?
It has been observed that Wi-Fi networks allowing remote login are usually more vulnerable than others. Hence, it is important that you disable the remote login for your Wi-Fi network. This will help to secure business Wi-Fi and prevent others from logging into your network using the remote login features.
Make the Ethernet Ports Secure
No matter how well you protect the remote login features of your Wi-Fi network, it is also important to secure the Ethernet ports. Otherwise, you won’t be able to protect the Wi-Fi network if someone plugs into the port and uses your Internet connection. Besides, people can also plug an AP of their own in the port. And by doing this, they are likely to have complete access to your Wi-Fi network. So, it is important to keep the Ethernet ports away from the access of customers and others. It’s better to set them up in some hidden place.
Planning to offer free Wi-Fi to customers at the office or store of your small business?
It might not be extremely secure. But you have to think about ways to make it safe enough. You can use different routers to use Wi-Fi for your business and to share it with your customers. This is likely to keep your network safe. Besides, you can keep in mind these few easy steps to secure your business Wi-Fi network for your small business.
Security Photo via Shutterstock
Aira Bongco
I learned a lot from this. I always think that you can secure a WiFi with a mere password. I did not think that there are other things that you can do to secure it.
Really good tips Steven, i get them.
Thanks for share.
Great points about security in the moment in the world of Wifi