HOW-2

Everything you need to know when you don't.

 

Lock down wireless with WAP

As technology evolves, so do the people who like to mess with us and make our lives harder by hacking networks and exploiting network weaknesses. One of the activities that has become relatively simple for a so-so savy hacker to perform is decoding your wireless WEP key. Remember setting up your home router and entering a network key? No? Then you better get put one on right now! Assuming that you have one, it is by default a WEP key. WEP stands for Wired Equivalent Privacy. WEP keys were great for awhile but there are so many tools readily available to hack whatever key you entered. A better alternative is the WAP option. This can be setup the same way as the WEP but with much better privacy. WAP is newer encryption technology. 

In every router there is an IP address that you can enter in your browser like Internet Explorer, and access your home routers settings. Typically by default that IP address is either 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1 depending on the manufacture. You will be prompted for a user name and password, enter it now. By default it is a blank username and password is "admin".

• Go to your routers wireless tab.
  
• We are looking for a tab that says "Wireless Settings".
  You want to select the security mode to be WAP.
• You will then have to enter a new security key.
• Save the setting and close your browser.
  Congrats! You just made it harder to be hacked!