Many people go to the trouble of setting up a wireless home network but don’t secure it. This means any neighbour or passer-by in the street with a wireless laptop can find and access your home network. If you’re feeling generous you can leave it unsecured for your neighbours to use. But if you’re using a broadband service with usage limits, letting others gain access means that you may reach your monthly limit more quickly. More importantly, an unsecured network makes it easier for hackers to access your computer.

There are five simple steps to get basic security on your wireless home network:

Buy a Router with a Built-in Firewall
A firewall monitors traffic flowing from the Internet to your home network. Check the product specifications of your router to see if it has a built-in firewall. Alternatively you can install a firewall on each of the computers in your home network.

Change the SSID
Your router will have its own default name (SSID). Hackers know what default manufacturer settings are, so you need to change the SSID to prevent them gaining access.

Disable the SSID Broadcast
An SSID broadcast sends a signal to nearby computers to tell them you have a wireless network, so it is important to switch it off to keep your network hidden.

Change Your Router’s User Name and Password
On your router set-up page it will also have a default user name and password. Hackers know the default user names and passwords.

Enable WEP Security
WEP stands for Wired Equivalent Privacy and you can ask Windows XP to automatically turn it on. It encrypts your wireless broadband signal to prevent anyone snooping on it.