Wireless Broadband: Security

Does you broadband seem slower than it should? One of the disadvantages of wireless broadband is that it opens your connection to interference and to theft of bandwidth. Put simply, because it is broadcast radio waves, others with the right knowledge and technology can siphon off some of your processing power, and, worse still, potentially access your private information. So how can you secure your broadband at home to avoid these problems?

Securing your wireless broadband

Wireless broadband is uniquely open to theft or interference by its nature. However, with every technology there is counter technology, and you can secure your home wireless broadband. Here's how:

• The reason that wireless broadband is so open to interference is that it is a transmission of information on radio waves, which are beamed from one antenna to another. In the 'beaming' process, it can be 'hacked' or accessed, by another user
• Check the security of your home wireless broadband by looking in 'My Network Places'. If there is no padlock icon next to the name of your network, you will need to add your own security
• The first port of call for security should be a wireless encryption key. This is basically an encryption code that functions like a password. It makes your wireless broadband harder to hack into. These are available in two different levels, WEP and WPA-PSK. The latter is recommended as it offers a far more useful level of security
• There are several other commonly used methods of protecting your home wireless broadband from theft or hacking.Firewalls, anti virus software (Norton or McAfee, for example), anti-phishing or anti spyware software will all give greater protection to your broadband
• Running live updates on Windows and regularly updating your anti virus program will also ensure that you have the most up to date protection
• If you're really concerned about security, consider wireless isolation. This makes your wireless signal effectively invisible to other PCs, making hacking it very difficult. Some routers offer this service, but you need to activate it yourself
• The last possibility for increasing your security is to create an access list for your broadband. This essentially names and limits all of the users who can have access to it

While wireless broadband does leave you vastly more open to hacking and theft, taking one or several of these measures should ensure that your broadband, and your important personal information, are safe.

Secure wireless Broadband connections at home

While there are certainly security concerns with wireless broadband that mean that, in essence, anyone with the know-how could stand outside your home with a laptop and access it, there are some very reassuring ways to protect yourself. Take the appropriate steps to secure your connection, and your wireless broadband will be safe.