How do I secure my wireless router?

Question

Someone in my appartment block is stealing my internet - I cannot log into my router in order to set a password for wireless - I have the IP address; however the password does not work. If this has been reset - is there any way that I can restore factory settings?

Many thanks.

It is a D-Link DI-524

Answer 1

There should be a small inset button on the back of your router. Hold it in for a few seconds and it will reset the router back to factory defaults.

Once you've done this, make sure you change the password so it's not the default any more. Use something secure - a combination of upper and lower case letters mixed with numbers works best.

Answer 2

Well by default, which you may still have set, there is not any password so try just using admin for the username and leave the password blank.

If that fails, you can reset the router to factory defaults (no password) by using a paperclip to press the small reset button on the back down for 10-15 seconds, wait for the lights to flash then settle and when they have you are reset to factory settings.

Once you have logged into the router, set an admin password! Then click on the wireless settings and set up WEP or WPA (wpa is much better if you computer is compatible) that will require a pass code for you to connect.
Make up a good pass code/ phrase that you can remember.

If you need help here is the link to Dlinks help site, these will tell you step by step how to enter WPA settings etc.
http://support.dlink.com/supportfaq/
just enter your model number for the faqs

Answer 3

You've got to remove wireless access to the router's admin pages. (This is one of my favorite rants on Y!A.) Fortunately, you have one weapon your hijackers don't: Physical access to the router.

1. If you don't still have your router's documentation, go on DLink's website and find out how to do a reset of this router.
Also look up the default password for the router.
2. Hook up an Ethernet cable between one of the LAN ports on the router and your computer.
3. Perform the Reset you researched in step 1.
4. After the Reset, you should still be able to get into the router's administraion pages with your (now-hardwired) computer.

Now you start hardening it against intrusion.

1.From your (currently) hardwired computer, log into your router's admin pages from your browser. The password should have reset to the default.
2.Find the page that controls wireless access to the admin pages and deactivate it. (After the Reset, it may already be off. If so, great!) Make it so someone has to be sitting next to the router with a computer and an Ethernet cable connecting them to control it.
3.Find the page in the router's admin pages that defines the SSID (essentially, the network name).
4.Turn off SSID Broadcasting so the router doesn't announce it to the world. You're not running a hotspot and all your machines should know the SSID.
5.Change it (you'll have to change it in all your machines also) so it's not using the default for your router.
6.Find out how to install a network (WEP or WPA) key (not a login password) for your router, do so and set it up there and on all your machines. I suggest copying-and-pasting it (there may be four) into a Notepad or Wordpad document so you can accurately copy-and-paste it to your machines.

Note: After this, you don't have to keep that computer hardwired, you can go wireless with it again, but I'd keep that ethernet cable dangling so you can easily do any router admin you have to. DON'T RE-ENABLE WIRELESS ADMINISTRATION AGAIN.

I hope that's clear enough and helps.

Answer 4

Get Wireless Secure Help http://www.dlinkroutersupport.com/