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Gareth · 17-04-2006, 12:48

You could also restrict the MAC addresses allowed to connect to your router, so that only those that you know and have specified, can successfully connect. However, this is not a foolproof method - it can be easily bypassed.

You may want to consider disabling broadcasting your SSID, but personally I don't advocate this. The theory is that if you don't broadcast it, people won't stumble on your WLAN by accident. However, it is trivially easy to find a WLAN - even with the SSID disabled - if you're in the vicinity of the router by using a tool such as netstumbler. As your SSID is leaked out constantly in any case, hiding the SSID is imo pretty pointless.

Also, if your SSID is hidden, then it could mean that your neighbours are unaware that you've got a WLAN setup, and there is the potential for you to both be broadcasting on the same channel - if you can't see any other WLANs in your vicinity, then you're not necessarily going to think that you're sharing a channel, but if you can see that there is another WLAN that you can pick-up, then you're more likiely to consider switching channels.

17-04-2006, 12:48	#2
Gareth cf.mega poster Join Date: Dec 2003 Age: 50 Posts: 7,101	Re: Securing my network You could also restrict the MAC addresses allowed to connect to your router, so that only those that you know and have specified, can successfully connect. However, this is not a foolproof method - it can be easily bypassed. You may want to consider disabling broadcasting your SSID, but personally I don't advocate this. The theory is that if you don't broadcast it, people won't stumble on your WLAN by accident. However, it is trivially easy to find a WLAN - even with the SSID disabled - if you're in the vicinity of the router by using a tool such as netstumbler. As your SSID is leaked out constantly in any case, hiding the SSID is imo pretty pointless. Also, if your SSID is hidden, then it could mean that your neighbours are unaware that you've got a WLAN setup, and there is the potential for you to both be broadcasting on the same channel - if you can't see any other WLANs in your vicinity, then you're not necessarily going to think that you're sharing a channel, but if you can see that there is another WLAN that you can pick-up, then you're more likiely to consider switching channels.