Defend Company Data Through a Secure Wi-Fi

Maintaining a secure online network is essential to the well-being of your business. Your online network helps you transmit sensitive data, like financial information, customer details and product minutiae—all of which deserve to be protected from online theft. This resource provides tips for making sure your company is digitally defended.

Encourage Wireless Security Using Your Router
Use Your Computer to Keep Your Data Safe
Use Spectrum’s Security Suite to Guard Your Personal Data
Stay Safe on Public Networks
FAQ

Summary

Your Wi-Fi is one of your hardest-working employees. Most of your other employees work with it throughout the day, and it helps your business collect and store information. This can range from public knowledge data to sensitive details, such as customer information, transaction specifics, employee data, and more. If this sounds like your business, then steps should be taken to protect your Wi-Fi as though it were one of your most valued employees. The guide below is for business owners or employees who would like to know some of the key steps for protecting the data security of their business. These steps include both physical preventative actions as well as best practice wise choices.

Encourage Wireless Security Using Your Router

The first and most effective step of securing your company’s wireless internet is to configure the router appropriately. The following steps promote a rock-solid Wi-Fi defense.
Secure your router with WPA or WPA2 (this is essentially setting up password-restricted access).
- WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) / WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access) = designed to secure a wireless local area network (WLAN), supposed to be as secure as a wired local area network (LAN). WPA is safer with 256-bit encryption (WEP has 128-bit encryption). See our FAQ section for more information about encryption.
Strengthen your Network Name (SSID) and Password. Your SSID is the unique title of your WLAN. To keep this name secure, turn off the “Allow broadcast of name” setting on your router. Once you have a name for your SSID, set it up with a strong password which includes a combination of letters, numbers and characters.
Disable remote access to your network. Doing so will help secure your network by preventing users from logging in to your network remotely.
Orient any routers as close to the center of the building as possible. The closer the router is to the edge of the building (i.e. windows, outer walls), the higher chance there will be that the network signal could reach farther out of the building. A signal that reaches far beyond the building’s walls makes it easier to locate for intruders.
Enable MAC filtering on your network. MAC filtering is a feature for limiting access to a network based on physical computers. Once this feature is turned on, the 12-character MAC ID of each network-permitted computer will need to be entered into the router. This must be kept up to date with any addition or removal of computers to the network.

Use Your Computer to Keep Your Data Safe

Always disable the “Automatically Connect to Available Wireless Network” settings on your device. This feature allows your computer to connect to any wireless network that presents itself within a workable proximity. Although this sounds helpful, it will probably not ask for the user’s permission to connect to a nearby network. This can easily expose your device and your data to untrustworthy networks without your knowledge.
Keep your security programs and operating systems as updated as possible. Staying current with these systems will help keep your computer shielded with any new security patches and virus definitions.
For every activity that requires a login, use a strong password. This should include a combination of letters, numbers and characters. Insist that your employees do not share their passwords with anyone and do not use their passwords for any other non-business system.
Educate your employees about the dangers of phishing emails. Online attackers have become skilled in the art of imitation, so it can catch unsuspecting employees unawares. See our related post about how to detect phishing online.

Use Spectrum’s Security Suite to Guard Your Professional Data

Spectrum Business Internet already includes software for their Security Suite, so it makes sense to take advantage of it. This free service involves several threat-neutralizing features to help keep your business safe without you having to lift a finger. Furthermore, automatic updates are incorporated into the system to ensure a real-time protection against all kinds of malware. The list below loosely outlines the main features of Spectrum’s Security Suite, but you can check with Spectrum to learn more.

Automatic Virus Removal: automatically removes viruses from your computer while it works in the background
Firewall: allows only authorized access to protected computers
Multi-Computer Protection: can be downloaded onto more than one computer
Browsing Protection: helps prevent users from unintentionally accessing harmful sites
Antibot Scanner: detects malicious software
Online Parental Controls: not just useful for parents—one feature of these controls includes the ability to block inappropriate or unnecessary websites from being accessed on your network

For more information, see our related post about Spectrum’s Security Suite.

Stay Safe on Public Networks

Sometimes work cannot be done at work. For example, a traveling owner and employee might find themselves in a position where they may need to access company data on their personal device while traveling. Without the built-in protection of the business Wi-Fi, users must make personal choices to help keep the company’s data secure.

Turn off “File and Printer Sharing” on your device. This feature, when enabled, potentially allows external users to have access to your device over the network.
Make sure that the public network you are connected to is legitimate. For example, if you are at a public library, ask an employee for verification of which network is directly affiliated with that library. Don’t join anything else that seems like a makeshift hotspot or personal network (i.e. “Dan’s iPhone” or an ambiguous-but-tempting “Free Wi-Fi”).
Avoid conducting any money-related activity when on a public network. Do not check bank accounts or pay for products using your credit card info unless you have a private connection to the internet. You do not know who is watching through a public network.
Consider using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) when accessing the internet over a public network. See our post about how to use a VPN to learn more.
Educate your employees. You naturally cannot monitor every employee who is working on the go, so it is crucial that employees are clearly informed of best practices for safeguarding company data.

Frequently asked questions

What is encryption?

It is a digital process used to prevent information theft during the transfer of data over the internet. It involves a formula that takes any data input from your network and converts that data into a meaningless sequence of letters and numbers.

What is a VPN?

A Virtual Private Network (VPN) can be used when accessing the internet through Wi-Fi hotspots. A VPN would allow your device to set up a secure connection with another network over the internet so you can protect yourself from prying eyes on dubious hotspots. You can use a VPN on both computers and mobile devices.

Can my router be hacked?

Yes, but you can prevent it by taking a few simple steps. These include changing your router’s username/password immediately after obtaining it, ensuring that your router has a unique network name (SSID), disabling Wi-Fi-protected setup (WPS), and more.

What is the difference between a public network and a trusted/private network?

A public network is an unsecure wireless internet network that is open to the public with few or no password restrictions. These Wi-Fi setups might occur in places like coffee shops, public transportation lobbies, etc. Anyone can join a public network, so file and device sharing should be turned off on personal devices. In a trusted/private network, random user entry is restricted by login credentials (passwords). Private homes or your personal internet setups should always protect their networks by requiring a login. File and device sharing are safe on a trusted network.

Should I allow guests to log into my company’s WiFi?

Try to only provide your company’s Wi-Fi credentials to the people who absolutely need it (namely, employees). Do not share this information with any irrelevant personnel. In addition, implement a guest network for everyone else who needs to access your network, such as guests. A guest network will provide access to the internet using a different network name (SSID) and password, but it will not allow guests directly into your main business network. Guests on this network would therefore not have access to file and device sharing over your private network.

Written by Sarah Solomon

Edited by Henry St. Pierre