Wi-Fi is a type of signal that is used at home, office and other workplaces, to provide access to the Internet network wirelessly and high speeds in a completely safe way.
Nevertheless, there are times when for some reason unknown devices connect to our network, bringing with them different inconveniences and putting the security of all the connected elements at risk.
For this and much more it is necessary to know In this tutorial we are going to explain what methods you can use to solve all these problems.
Disadvantages of connecting to your WiFi to steal your internet
There are different disadvantages, inconveniences or dangers that people unknown or unrelated to you connect to your Wi-Fi network and steal your signal for their own use.
It must be clarified that illegally using the service that someone else is using and that you have purchased, adding that in turn only that person is paying, it’s a theft. If for some reason, the owner of said service has given his key to another person, only that person can connect.
Among the disadvantages of strangers stealing your Wi-Fi are:
slow internet speed
This is the most common disadvantage, and it is the main symptom that others are connecting to your network without your permission. Although it may not seem like it, this can cause many inconveniences and great inconvenience to the affected person.
For example, if you are the type of person who likes to watch their series or movies in the highest quality, play online, perform multiple downloads, work remotely and online, upload images or videos to your work media, etc.
Being slow in your browsing speed can worsen your feeling on the platform where you watch your movies, even affect your experience or level of play. In the worst case, it can generate failures or non-compliance in your work, since it was uploaded and delivered later than requested.
Unsecured Wi-Fi networks
This happens when unknown people have access to your Wi-Fi network, This allows them to observe a wide variety of personal information, browsing data or clone web pages such as your bank’s, in order to steal money from your accounts or change their passwords.
illegal activities
In addition to being a possible victim of information theft, the person who is stealing your wifi may be doing different illegal tasks which can be very serious, such as credit card cloning, illegal downloads, selling child pornography, generating identity theft, and a long etc in digital crimes.
The worst thing about this case is that when it is carried out under your Internet connection, When these crimes are discovered, the main suspect will be you. This is because the access point is from your Wi-Fi network and directly from your network connection.
Steps to detect and check who has connected to your Wi-Fi network
There are different methods that can be used to see when other people are connecting to your Wi-Fi network illegally or without your permission, these range from Observe the behavior of your router until you enter the options of your router and view the number of devices connected to it.
Thanks to this, it is possible to know when unknown individuals are stealing your connection and in turn take actions to get it out of it:
watch your router
If you suspect that someone else is connecting to your Wi-Fi network, the first thing you should do is Observe how your router behaves at times when no one in your house is using it, Or you can even ask such users to disconnect from the network temporarily and see if the lights on the device are blinking as a sign of network activity.
If the test is positive, Indeed, there is another person or persons connecting to your Wi-Fi network without your consent.
Watch out for browsing speed
Another option, although it was previously mentioned, is that your Internet is slow to browse and download, In this case, the main thing is to make sure that it is not a mistake by the company. If it performs the necessary tests and it turns out that the speed is correct, it is because there are other people connected to it.
using your computer
This verification method is quite extensive and in turn is the most important for the moment you want to eliminate intruders from your network and prevent your connection from being stolen.
The first thing you should know is your IP address and in this way it will be possible from your browser. In this you can make changes to the configuration of your Wi-Fi device and observe the devices that are using your connection.
In Windows 10
You only need to click on the icon “Internet connection”:
- Then you must click on the tab that says “Net”, and finally choose the option “Net”.
- A new window will open, in this you will see all the information of your connection, the one that interests you is that of your gateway or DNS servers, which is commonly 192.168.0.1.
On Windows 8 and 7
The procedure is a bit longer. but just as simple:
- For this you will have to enter “Control Panel” and then you will select “Network and Internet”.
- now you will choose “Center network and sharing”.
- You will click on the option “Net”. A new window will open, in this you will click on “Details”.
- Observe the information indicated in the section on “Default Gateway”.
macOS
Here it is quite simple to know your ip address you will only have to follow the following procedures:
- select the connection what are you using, You can do this from the side panel, there you will see a new window called “Net” and in this you will see your ip address.
Now you only have to enter the router to see who or what are the devices that are connected:
- Enter the option “Wireless” and then select the option “Client list or station info”, You can change this alternative depending on the brand and model of your router.
- You will see a list where you can see who connects to your network.
How to block and expel intruders who steal your Wi-Fi signal and worsen your internet connection?
It is important to know the methods and alternatives that exist to remove and prevent access to those people who try to enter your wireless Internet network illegally and without your permission.
Since even though you know how to recognize when these individuals access, If you do not know how to remove them, you will not be able to solve the problems that this causes:
Change the password of your router
It is the easiest method there is to expel all intruders from your network and regain controlled access to it. Also, It is very important to have your own key and not a generic one, because this makes it easier for strangers to access.
access to your network, to do this:
- Go to the section of “Wireless”.
- now choose “Wireless security” and locate the option “WPA/WPA2-Personal (recommended).”
- Choose “Password” and type the new password.
The name of this option may vary depending on the brand and model of your device, but mainly this has to do with security or access control. Navigate between the different functions that your router has until you find the one that allows you to modify the password of the device.
Limit the access of computers with MAC filtering
This is the best way to prevent access to unwanted users within your network, the only negative point is that depending on how you configure your MAC filtering, it will be necessary to constantly update the access data on your router.
This is because if a visitor arrives to whom you want to give access to your network or you get a new device and want to connect it, you must First give access to it by entering the device settings.
The other not recommended way to use this method is creating a black or blocked access list, For this you must recognize the IP of the device that you are not interested in connecting.
The negative of this method It is that if the person changes the device, and knows ways to steal your Wi-Fi, they will always be able to enter from any computer, making it null and useless for you to block it.
How to configure filtering by MAC?
Before starting the configuration to filter the connected devices using their MAC address, it is necessary to know it, for this it is enough to enter your router and look for the option that says “Wireless Statistics” to observe each of the devices that appear and write down their addresses, which is made up of a series of numbers and letters.
You can check the MAC address of your Android or iOS device by entering as follows:
- Opens “Settings”go to the section that says “About of the phone”.
- Lastly, enter “Condition” and copy the information that says “Wi-Fi MAC Address.”
On iOS devices the process is very similar on Android.
Once you verify the addresses of all your devices, for sure you can find that of that unknown element.
MAC filtering may appear in different ways, for example: MAC Filter, Wireless MAC Filtering, among other options. But there will always be the MAC word associated with this function, so check carefully and mainly in the section “Wireless” of your router until you get it.
Now you only have to configure those devices to which you are going to allow access to your Wi-Fi network:
- In section Filtering Rules you are going to choose “Allow” (allow).
- Now you will click on “Add new”you will add the Mac address to a small description for it, and observe that the tab is located in “Enanbled”.
- It only remains to press “Save”.
- Repeat this procedure as many times as necessary.
- Finally, visualize that the option Wireless MAC Filtering this in “Enanbled”, if not, change it to activate filtering by MAC address.
Tips to prevent third parties from connecting to your WiFi without your permission
There are certain things that I know should be avoided or performed periodically, in order to reduce risk or prevent other people from entering your network without your consent.
Since it is important to keep your security and your personal information safe, apart from the fact that Wi-Fi theft is a somewhat shameful crime, and maybe you want to avoid that pain to your neighbor for carrying out said activity:
Change key constantly
ANDChanging the password is a simple task to do and something that you should do periodically, especially when you suspect that strangers or unwanted people are using your connection without asking your permission or paying something in exchange for the service.
Do not share your password
There are occasions when neighbors or an acquaintance ask you for your password, and this is not bad, only when it is that person who uses it and is not sharing it with anyone. If you do not have much confidence in that person, or it is not clear to them that they should not share your network password with another, it is best that you do not.
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