How To Make A Wifi Extender Using Old Router

Your WiFi router might non be secure, simply what tin can y'all practise virtually it?

Your WiFi router might not be secure, but what can you do about it?

(Prototype credit: Getty)

A huge number of usa are working from habitation during the coronavirus pandemic, but our dwelling house networks may not be up to the task when it comes to security, according to a recent written report (opens in new tab) by Germany's Fraunhofer Establish for Advice (FKIE). The FKIE examined 127 of the best WiFi routers (opens in new tab) from beyond seven different manufacturers and constitute that they all had meaning security flaws.

"Our results are alarming. There is no router without flaws. 46 routers did not get any security update within the terminal year," said the researchers in the summary of their findings. They also stated that "Many routers are affected by hundreds of known vulnerabilities. Fifty-fifty if the routers got recent updates, many of these known vulnerabilities were not fixed."

The seven companies whose routers were tested were ASUS, AVM, D-Link, Linksys, Netgear, TP-Link, and Zyxcel. Diverse models were tested from each visitor and while some were more secure than others, all had vulnerabilities. The report concludes that "AVM does a ameliorate job than the other vendors regarding most of the security aspects. Even so, AVM routers are not flawless every bit well. ASUS and Netgear do a meliorate job on some aspects than D-Link, Linksys, TP-Link and Zyxel."

What should you practice to secure your home network?

Commencement matter's beginning, nosotros don't recommend ripping your current router out of the wall and smashing information technology upwardly with baseball bats, all Office Space manner. For ane thing, these security exploits and gaps were plant in WiFi routers from all of the major manufacturers. Instead, we'd merely take this equally yet another reminder that we should be doing everything we can to go on our home devices condom from would-exist attackers.

Buying and installing 1 of the best internet security software (opens in new tab) is a not bad starting point. These software combine the best antivirus software (opens in new tab) with other security features, including a firewall. Firewalls block and regulate incoming and outgoing traffic, preventing other people from connecting to your local network. So even if they break through your WiFi router's defenses, they shouldn't be able to admission your wider network. It's not foolproof, simply this added layer of protection is highly recommended.

Yous should also look into signing up to i of the best VPN services (opens in new tab). A VPN is a service that masks your IP address by creating an encrypted connection with a server somewhere else in the earth, making it incredibly hard for someone to admission your network. This means that your online activities are protected and you will be largely anonymous, since tracking software won't exist able to trace you back to your home IP address. We have a total article explaining what is a VPN, and why do you need one? (opens in new tab) if you'd like to know more about VPNs.

Ian Stokes is the Tech Editor here at Top Ten Reviews. He has extensive experience in tech and games journalism, with work published on IGN, Kotaku UK, Waypoint, GamesRadar, Trusted Reviews, and many more. You'll find him roofing everything from smartphones and home computers to 3D printers and headphones. He'southward also our resident cocktail good.