Magazine
Securing your internet network isn’t just a recommendation anymore; it is a necessity to ensure that your business data remains secure and protected. At the heart of any business’s internet infrastructure is its WiFi routers, which control how your devices can connect to the internet and access it. Despite the critical role of the WiFi router, many businesses overlook the basic security settings on the WiFi router that can protect the network against data breaches, cyber attacks, and unauthorised access.
If you are a business owner or manage a business, then your first digital operation should be securing your network through your WiFi router. To ensure that your network remains secure and protected, there are several router security settings that you should configure, including the ones that we have listed below.
Most people tend to overlook the importance of administrator credentials while setting up a WiFi router through the router admin panel, such as the TP-Link management portal for TP-Link routers. Instead of changing administrator credentials, people leave the default administrator credentials unchanged. These default usernames and passwords are known to everyone and are also available on the internet.
Since the router’s admin panel provides access to all the settings of the router, if a malicious actor manages to gain access, they can gain control over your network, change DNS settings, open ports to external threats, and even disable the internet altogether. Therefore, it is recommended to change administrator credentials immediately after setup to keep the network secure and accessible to authorised people only.
The encryption protocol that you set for your network dictates the security of the entire network because encryption is the backbone of the wireless network. Choosing the latest and most secure encryption protocol can offer resistance to brute-force attacks and enhance the encryption of the network.
Currently, WPA3 is the latest and most secure protocol, but if that is not available, then WPA2 is also widely used and acceptable. Avoid WEP and TKIP at all costs, as these are outdated and vulnerable.
Setting the encryption protocol is quite simple; just log into your router’s admin dashboard, head over to the wireless settings, and select WPA3-Personal or WPA2-Personal as the encryption protocol under the security options.
Remote management is a handy feature that allows you to access the router settings or the router admin website, let’s say the Tenda website, from outside the local network. Although remote management is a convenient feature, it opens the door to external threats if not configured correctly.
Disabling remote management can prevent malicious actors and hackers from remotely accessing your router or launching brute-force attacks. Just visit the router admin panel and turn off the Remote Management, Web Access from WAN, or Remote GUI feature (depending on what your router calls it) to disable the remote management feature, unless you really need and use it.
Business-class routers come with a built-in firewall that monitors the incoming and outgoing traffic on the network to block harmful packets according to how it is configured. In case the built-in firewall is not enabled by default, you should enable it so that it acts as a security checkpoint for your entire network and creates a layered defence system that prevents malicious actors from gaining access to your network.
Firmware is the operating system on which a router runs, and like any other software, it can have vulnerabilities and bugs as well. Router manufacturers release firmware updates on a regular basis to fix bugs, patch exploits, and enhance security features. You should always enable automatic firmware updates on your router to ensure that your router remains protected. In case auto-updates aren’t available, schedule monthly checks to see if a new version is available.
Modern-day routers come with various services and advanced features enabled by default, some of which you may never use, but can still be a potential entry point for hackers. These include UPnP (Universal Plug and Play), WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup), Telnet, and FTP. Disabling all the services that you don’t use can protect your network and ensure that your data and customer data remain secure.
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