Increase Your Wireless Security to Stay Safe Online

Safeguard your router by using enabling WPA or WPA2. In everyday terms, this means setting up password-restricted access to the internet through your router.

• Set up your WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access):  designed to fortify a wireless local area network (WLAN), which makes it just as secure as a wired local area network (LAN).
• Keep a strong Network Name (SSID) and Password: A Network Name (SSID) is the title of your specific wireless local area network (WLAN). Pair a strong SSID with a solid password. The most secure passwords contain a combination of letters, numbers, and characters.

Turn off the option on your computer to “Automatically Connect to Available Wireless Network.” If you do not turn this option off, you risk exposure to unreliable networks through which intruders may gain access to your devices and data. This is especially important because some devices will not alert you when your device is accessing a new network.

Make sure that your computers and mobile devices have the most recent updates for their respective operating systems. These updates generally include extra layers of security to help bolster the protection within your network. Stay on top of when new software updates for your device are released.

Disable “File and Printer Sharing” when your device connects to a public network. When on a public network, there is always a chance that intruders could gain access to your data if you leave this feature on.

Have a strong password for every activity that calls for a login and do not repeat passwords across accounts. If you use one password for multiple (or all) of your other online accounts, then one password breach could jeopardize the rest of your other accounts with the same password. If such a thing happens, you may not be able to remember which accounts used that password in time to change them.

Try to stick to secure website browsing. Look for website URLs that begin with “https.” The “s” in that chunk of the URL stands for “secure.” Some sites and browsers also condense this information into a little padlock icon next to the URL bar.

Sign out regularly. When you finish using any of your online accounts, get into the practice of logging out of them and then closing the browser tab.

Use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) if you often use Wi-Fi hotspots. A VPN would allow your device to set up a secure connection with another network over the internet so you can prevent you from prying eyes on questionable hotspots. You can use a VPN on both computers and mobile devices. Use our related post to find out more about how to use a VPN.

Enable fraudulent site alerts on your browser. This browser feature can warn users against clicking on links that lead to known malware-infected sites. This is accomplished by checking the URL against Google’s list of pages that are suspected of phishing, malware inclusion, and force-downloading undesired software.

Be careful of phishing emails. Double-check unusual emails for grammatical (not spelling) mistakes. Be wary of any email that requests extremely sensitive details or tries to persuade you to act immediately for any reason. Do not click on links in any email that seems even vaguely suspicious. See our related post about phishing detection to learn more.

Limit any threats against your financial belongings by sticking to only one credit card for online purchases. Avoid submitting your debit card information as much as possible. If your bank information is endangered, you can reduce the amount of damage control you will need to do by using a credit card only. A compromised credit card will only run up so many bills due to credit card limits, but a hacked debit cards means a thief would only be limited by all of the funds you own in that account.

Regularly rid your computer of files or apps you no longer need. Taking away unnecessary junk can help your security system more efficiently scan your device for threats. The fewer files and programs you have, the fewer places for malware to hide.

Consider backing up your device to an external drive or cloud service in case your system does get compromised.

Never, ever download anything from the internet unless you are completely certain of its legitimacy. This includes software, programs, music, videos and more. Beware of any great things that are “free,” which may come at the cost of your data security.