How To Make Your Wireless Network Invisible

Anyone that uses a wireless router for home or office purposes knows that anyone with a wireless card and is in range will be able to see that network regardless if it is encrypted or not. If you are someone like me then you don’t want your neighbors seeing and possibly trying to gain access to your network.

The name that people see for your network is known as its SSID (Service Set Identifier) which is usually set to a default depending on your router. Changing the SSID to something more familiar will help some, but since Windows XP automatically searches out nearby SSIDs, displays their name, and lets you easily connect to them, you need to tell your router to not broadcast its real name, essentially making it invisible. Since you will know the real name, you will be able to connect your own computers to the network with no hassle.

All routers are going to display their controls a bit differently, but they all work the same fundamentally. I’m going to give the steps using a Linksys router, but if you have NetGear or 3com you should be able to figure it out just easily.

1. Login to the router by opening your browser and going to http://192.168.1.1 . If you have never logged in the default login/pw is admin/admin, you can change this password in the router settings later if you like.
2. Click on the Wireless tab and in the Wireless Network Name (SSID) Box type a new name for your network, something unique that can’t easily be guessed is preferred.
3. In the Wireless SSID Broadcast section select disabled.
4. It is also a good idea to periodically change the channel on which your wireless is broadcast. You can do this in the Wireless Channel drop-down list.
5. Click Save Settings
6. Now you just need to tell your computer to connect to the SSID you assigned your network. To do this click on the small wireless icon in the notification area. Once that opens click on the Change Advanced Settings and then select the Wireless Network tab. Click the Add button in Preferred Network section and type in your unique SSID and click ok. 

Now your computer will know that network without seeing the SSID being broadcast and you’re done.

reference:

 Matthew Berman, November, 2006, How To Make Your Wireless Network Invisible

< http://internetbusinessdaily.net/how-to-make-your-wireless-network-invisible/ >

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Use File Sharing with Caution

If you don’t need to share directories and files over your network, you should disable file sharing on your computers.  You may want to consider creating a dedicated directory for file sharing, and move or copy files to that directory for sharing. In addition, you should password protect anything you share, and use a password that is long, contains non-alphanumeric characters (such as #, $, and &), and does not contain personal information (such as your birth date). Never open an entire hard drive for file sharing.

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Turn Off the Network During Extended Periods of Non-Use

The ultimate in wireless security measures, shutting down your network will most certainly prevent outside hackers from breaking in! While impractical to turn off and on the devices frequently, at least consider doing so during travel or extended periods offline. Computer disk drives have been known to suffer from power cycle wear-and-tear, but this is a secondary concern for broadband modems and routers.

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Assign Static IP Address To Your Network Device

HOW TO:

• Click on Control Panel in the Start menu. Click View network status and tasks. (Or right-click Network on the Desktop and then select Properties.)
• Click on Manage network connections.

• Click on Properties.

• Select Internet Protocol Version 4(TCP/IPv4) or Internet Protocol(TCP/IP). Click on Properties.

• Assign a static IP address for your network device.
In the General tab, click Use the following IP address, and enter:
- IP address. The static IP address you want to assign to this computer.
- Subnet mask. Subnet mask used by your router.
- Default gateway. IP address of your router's default gateway.
In Use the following DNS server addresses, enter all the IP addressses for the DNS servers your router uses. Click OK.

reference: 
< http://www.webcam123.com/en/faq/wirelessIP.html >

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Enable MAC Address Filtering

If you have changed the default SSID you have added a piece of the puzzle that an attacker would need to figure out before they could connect to your wireless network, but why stop there?

Most wireless network routers and acces points contain the ability to filter devices based on their MAC address. If you enable MAC address filtering, only the devices with MAC addresses configured in the wireless router or access point will be allowed to connect.

The MAC address is a unique identifier for networking hardware such as wireless network adapters. It is possible to spoof the MAC address, so an attacker could potentially capture details about a MAC address from your network and pretend to be that device to connect to your network, but no casual hacker or curious snooper will go to those lengths so MAC filtering will still protect you from the majority of users.

You can find the MAC address for your network adapters on your devices by following these steps:

1.        Click Start and then Run

2.        Type command and press Enter

3.        Type ipconfig /all in the command prompt window and press Enter

4.        Find the line labeled physical access address in the resulting information. That is the MAC address for that adapter.

         

   -If you have more than one network adapter you will need to look at through the results to make sure you get the MAC address from the correct adapter.

Refer to your owner's manual for the wireless network router or access point you are using to learn how to access the configuration and administration screens and enable and configure MAC address filtering to protect your wireless network.

reference:

Tony Bradley, CISSP-ISSAP, former About.com Guide,Filter MAC Addresses To Secure Your Wireless Network, 

< http://netsecurity.about.com/od/quicktip1/qt/qtwifimacfilter.htm >

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Position the router safely

Wireless signals normally reach to the exterior of a home. A small amount of signal leakage outdoors is not a problem, but the further this signal reaches, the easier it is for others to detect and exploit. Wireless signals often reach through neighboring houses and into streets. When installing a wireless home network, the position of the access point or router determines its reach. Try to position these devices near the centre of the home rather than near windows to minimise leakage. Many routers allow you to reduce the range of your router from the administrative panel to prevent the signal leakage.

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Keep Your Router Software Patched and Up to Date

From time to time, the manufacturer of your wireless router will release updates to the device software or patches to repair bugs. Be sure to check the manufacturer’s web site regularly for any updates or patches for your device’s software.  

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Disable SSID Broadcast

One way to protect your network from unauthorized access is to hide the fact that you have a wireless network at all. By default, wireless network equipment typically broadcasts a beacon signal, announcing its presence to the world and providing key information necessary for devices to connect to it, including the SSID.

The SSID (service set identifier), or network name, of your wireless network is required for devices to connect to it. If you don't want random wireless devices to connect to your network, then you certainly don't want to announce your presence and include one of the key pieces of information they need to do so.

By disabling the broadcasting of the SSID, or even the beacon signal itself, you can hide the presence of your wireless network or at least obscure the SSID itself which is critical for a device to connect to your network.

Refer to the owner's manual for your specific wireless access point or router to learn how to access the configuration and administration screens and disable the beacon signal or the broadcasting of the SSID.

reference:

Tony Bradley, CISSP-ISSAP, former About.com Guide,Filter MAC Addresses To Secure Your Wireless Network, 

<  http://netsecurity.about.com/od/quicktip1/qt/qtwifinossid.htm >

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How to Protect Your Wireless Network

While the security problems associated with wireless networking are serious, there are steps you can take to protect yourself. The following are some of these steps :

1. Make Your Wireless Network Invisible 
2. Rename Your Wireless Network
3. Change Default Administrator Passwords
4. Use File Sharing with Caution
5. Enable Firewalls On Each Computer and the Router
6. Keep Your Access Point Software Patched and Up to Date
7. Check Your Internet Provider’s Wireless Security Options
8. Assign Static IP Addresses to Devices
9. Enable MAC Address Filtering
10. Turn Off the Network During Extended Periods of Non-Use
11. Turn on (Compatible) WPA / WEP Encryption
12. Change the Default SSID
13. Disable SSID Broadcast

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