Why Home Network Security is More Important Than Ever
Top-6 Best Practices for Protecting Your Family’s Devices
A comprehensive guide on how to prevent viruses from getting on family devices
With the rise of digital technologies, our homes have become smarter and more efficient. We can turn on the light with clapping hands, or ask Syri to turn on our robot vacuum cleaner. Having all those bells and whistles that make our lives more convenient, we have also opened the door to new security threats. From smart thermostats to security cameras, each of our devices can become a potential entry point for hackers to gain access to our personal data or even control our devices.
That’s why securing our home networks has never been more important. Today, we will discuss the best practices for protecting your family’s devices and safeguarding our privacy. By following these simple practices, we will learn to protect personal information, and prevent unauthorized access to home networks.
Advice №1: Don’t Risk It — Keep Your Software Up to Date
All the functionality of our devices is controlled by relevant software and keeping this software up to date is one of the most essential steps you can take to secure your home network. Software updates usually include security patches that fix various vulnerabilities and prevent cyberattacks.
Neglecting software updates, you leave your devices and network exposed to potential risks and security threats.
The best practice to ensure that your software is updated is to configure automatic updates wherever possible, regularly check for updates manually, and ensure that all devices on your network are up to date. Agree, this is not the hardest step to protecting your family’s devices and securing your home network.
Advice №2: Guard Your Home Against Viruses
Protecting your family’s devices from viruses is a crucial aspect of securing your home network. Viruses and other malicious software can get on your devices through email attachments, suspicious websites, or even by exploiting vulnerabilities in outdated software. To prevent these attacks, it’s important to install and regularly update antivirus software on all of your devices.
Attention is also needed when you open email attachments or click on links from unknown sources. The best practice is to ignore software or files from untrusted websites and enable your built-in firewall. You can also configure your router to block incoming traffic on certain ports or use third-party blocking software. With these simple steps, you can greatly reduce the risk of virus infections and keep your family’s devices safe from harm.
Advice №3: Unbeatable Passwords — No Chance for Hackers
Strong passwords are crucial for protecting your home network from unauthorized access. Hackers and cybercriminals use a variety of methods to crack weak passwords, and once they have access to your network, they can compromise all of your connected devices. To create a strong password, use a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and special characters.
Moreover, you mustn’t use one password on multiple accounts, no matter how strong it is.
Because if hackers get access to one device or service, they can easily hack all other accounts with the same password. To solve this issue, the best practice is to use a password manager, to generate, store, and autofill passwords with secure storage.
Advice №4: Double Your Protection with 2FA
Two-factor authentication (2FA) is a technique that allows adding some extra security to your home network. With TFA, you enable the secondary form of authentication, such as a code sent to your phone or authenticator app, in addition to your main credentials. This makes it impossible for hackers to gain access to your network, even if they have your password.
To enable 2FA, go to the security settings of each of your accounts and follow the instructions to set up 2FA. Many services now offer support for 2FA, so be sure to enable it wherever possible.
Advice №5: Protect Your WiFi Network
Almost all of your smart devices are connected to a home network via WiFi. It goes without saying that badly protected WiFi can be a red carpet for hackers and unauthorized third parties. The first step to prevent WiFi networks from hacking is to change the default password for your WiFi router to a strong and unique one.
You should also change the network name (SSID) to something unique and disable the broadcast of the SSID. Consider enabling network encryption, such as WPA2, and limiting access to your network by configuring a MAC address whitelist. These steps can help ensure that only authorized devices are able to connect to your network.
Advice №6: Stay Anonymous Online with VPN
A VPN, or Virtual Private Network, creates a secure tunnel between your device and the internet by routing your traffic through a safe server. This helps protect your privacy and security by encrypting all data sent through the internet and hiding your IP address from potential attackers. Using a VPN is particularly important when using public WiFi networks or accessing sensitive information online. To set up a VPN, you can subscribe to a VPN service and follow their instructions to install the VPN client on your device.
Conclusion
In conclusion, securing your home network is essential for protecting your family’s devices and personal information. By following best practices such as keeping your software up to date, using strong passwords, enabling two-factor authentication, securing your WiFi network, and using a VPN, you can greatly reduce the risk of cyberattacks and unauthorized access. Remember to regularly review and update your security measures to stay ahead of potential threats. By taking these steps, you can ensure that your home network remains a safe and secure environment for you and your family.
