Is your WiFi network secure?

If you own any Apple devices, you may have noticed recently that they now provide a warning when you’re connecting to what is considered an insecure network.

The warning comes when you’re trying to connect to a network using an older security protocol like WEP or WPA.

In more plain English, that usually means that you’ll get the warning if you’re connecting to an older router. More modern routers generally use more modern security settings.

So what’s the deal, should you be concerned, and is this only about Apple devices?

Well, first of all, no, this isn’t just about Apple devices. Any devices connecting to insecure networks are vulnerable to attack and other users snooping on your traffic.

As to whether you should be concerned, the straightforward answer is if you’re connecting to insecure networks then yes, you should. That doesn’t mean it’s a cause for blind panic, but you should definitely be considering the security of your own network at home or work and thinking twice before connecting to insecure public networks.

Getting security right

The problem with older routers using older security protocols is that they’re no longer secure.

The likes of WEP and WPA have long since been compromised, which means if your router is still using these security protocols it isn’t much more secure than using no password at all.

It’s probably enough to stop the average passer-by on the street from logging into your network, but anyone with a laptop and a few cheaply available tools can very easily get access to your apparently secure network.

That’s why, wherever possible you should be using more modern security settings, like WPA2-AES or even WPA3.

You can use a web browser to access your router’s settings to check whether it’s set up properly (instructions on how to access the admin panel of your router are usually provided on the router itself).

Instructions for checking and changing the security settings on the Zen supplied FRITZ!Box 7530 are available here.

The chances are, your router is probably already using up to date security. However, it’s definitely worth a check. The routers that we've supplied in recent years (Technicolor TG582N, Technicolor TG589, Technicolor DWA0120, Technicolor DGA122, Zyxel VMG1312, Zyxel VMG8924, FRITZ!Box 3490 and FRITZ!Box 7530) all support at least WPA2 encryption. But if you’re using your own router or an older router without modern security settings, it might be time to think about an upgrade.