Removing strangers from your Wi-Fi network is easy, but detecting them is hard. You may not even notice unauthorized users, such as your neighbor’s kid, who uses your internet to watch viral videos. Although you want to be nice and allow others to use your network, strangers who mooch off of it usually don’t have your best interests at heart.
Discover why it’s important to only allow trusted users to connect to your Wi-Fi.
Is It Dangerous to Allow Strangers to Connect to My Wi-Fi?
The only people who should be on your network are your family. If your Wi-Fi connection is set to public, then your neighbors or passerby can connect to it. If they misuse your network, they can slow down your connection’s speed, introduce malware to your devices, or access illegal websites.
Being nice to strangers and allowing them to connect to your internet isn’t worth the risks. Follow these best-practice security guidelines to minimize the risk of unauthorized network intrusion.
Sharing Your Wi-Fi Is All About Trust
Let’s start by breaking down what it means to share your internet connection. One of the primary reasons why every household with Wi-Fi needs a router is because it provides a firewall between an untrusted network, such as the internet, and a safe network, such as the local network you use for all your devices.