One of the most vulnerable points in any network infrastructure for small businesses is the Wi-Fi running in your place of business. How secure is your Wi-Fi? Here are some basic tips to strengthen your Wi-Fi network:
- Set a strong router password. Make sure its complex, meaning minimum of 8 characters (the more the better), contains, upper, lower, numerics and special characters (ex. @#$%^). For more on password Do’s and Don’ts I recommend this article from Krebs On Security.
- Set a unique unidentifiable strong password to join your Wi-Fi network. Some small businesses just use their name for their Wi-Fi password, or have no password at all.
- Separate your guest network from your internal network. If you allow customers, guests, clients to have Wi-Fi access make sure the guest network is not the same as your internal network or POS (Point of Sale) network. If you allow anyone to have network access to your POS network, credit card numbers could be obtained and put your business at risk as well as your customers. Some routers provide this ability internally.
- Disable WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup). This is convenience feature however makes your network. The only protection you have is a short pin code.
- At a minimum use WPA2 Personal for your security mode. Older security modes can easily be compromised. Best form of protection is WPA2 Enterprise but is more expensive and complex to setup.
- Finally, keep your router updated with firmware. Router manufacturers provide updates to their routers occasionally. Make sure you monitor router for available updates.
These are some basic tips to secure your network but is by no means a complete list. However, doing at least one of these will make your business more secure than it was. If you would like assistance in setting up your Wi-Fi router please contact us.
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