Securing Home Network

What is Home Network Security?

The protection of a network that connects items in a home to each other and to the internet, including as routers, computers, cellphones, and Wi-Fi-enabled cameras and CCTV, is referred to as home network security. A wireless network is formed by connecting a wireless router to an internet access point, such as a fiber or DSL modem.

As an example, let us consider a home wireless network. Almost every member of the household uses laptops, PCs, cell phones, and tablets to access it. With the Internet of Things, a variety of other devices in the home can connect to the internet, like your fridge and wash machine. Going wireless allows you to connect several gadgets to the internet from different parts of your house and at the ease of access when you are outside.
However, with that, comes a concern of a simple flaw in the home Wi-Fi network, which can provide a criminal access to nearly all the gadgets that connect to it. This could cause compromise of personal information, child safety, device security, utilization of the network like free internet or to perpetrate cybercrime and other issues.
Unless you secure your router and take precautions in the connections, others may gain access to information on your computer, use your internet service for free, and maybe use your network to perpetrate cybercrime.

Revisiting the perceived approach regarding securing home networks:

Home users have these common misconceptions:

Their home network is not big enough to be vulnerable to a cyberattack.
Their products are safe and secure enough.

Steps to make your home wireless network more secure:

Your default home network's name should be changed.
To Safeguard Your wireless network, make sure you choose a strong and unique password to access your Wi-Fi and change the default administrator password of your router.
Enable network encryption to improve your Wi-Fi security. Use strong encryption like WPA2 / WPA3 on your home and office Wi-Fi router instead of Open or WEP security as these can easily be hacked.
When you are not at home, it is advisable to turn off your wireless home network unless otherwise needed.
Routers offer a remote access feature allowing to access it from the WEB. By default, Remote Access should be disabled however it is good to check.
Always keep the software/firmware on your router up to current, because even if a username and password is set, this will not be a way to stop the attack if the device is vulnerable.
If you have an office setup at home on a large scale- a Firewall can aid in the security of your wireless network.
Educate yourself on the vulnerable ports or services related to home routers, file share or Backup drives you use in your home network as those can allow criminals to access your network. In addition, be proactive in identifying your concerns and conveying them to the technician installing the device (in case you are not Tech savvy).
Place the wireless router as close to the center of your home as possible. First and foremost, it will enable Internet connection to all your home's rooms. Second, you do not want your Wi-Fi signal to extend too far beyond your home, where it could be readily intercepted by malicious individuals. As a result, placing your wireless router near a window is not suggested because there is nothing to prevent the signal from outside your home.
Another extra for the tech savvy individuals and in the applicable setups- enable router loggings to view the activity.

Steps to Protect Devices in a Home Network:

Limit administrator account use.
Use updated operating systems & hardware's.
For the Tech Savvy, Use a Web Browser with Sandboxing Capabilities.
Opt to install an antivirus software that is comprehensive (protection plan includes a whole package).
Only download software from reputable sources.
On pcs and laptops, use full disk encryption (FDE).
Make use of strong passwords and passcodes on systems and mobile devices.
Turn off Microsoft Office macros.
Perform house keeping on your devices, as such to remove unused or unwanted applications.
Optimize the scheduling of scanning and performance actions in the setting of your Antivirus.
Do not click on online links supplied to you by people you do not know or that appear out of character for people you do know. If you are not sure about something, verify with the individual you believe sent it first.
Connecting your laptop or mobile devices to untrusted networks, such as free Wi-Fi or internet cafés, should be done with caution. If you were hacked in a café and the hacker knows your previous connections, he can construct an open connection like a hotspot you have used in the past. Best practice is to manually choose forget network from your devices.