Security for noobs

[sara_dippity]

Okay, so I have a router and all I know about security is having a password for it and not sharing my folders. Only now I have new downstairs neighbors who are willing to pay half my internet costs if they can use my router to get their playstation online (which is a relief on my budget) so I said okay and gave them the password. Am I an idiot? Is there a way they can use their playstation to mess with my files even though they aren't shared, or am I just paranoid?

[~Darkseeker~]

The WEP/WPA password just means they can get into your network

- They'd need the password/credentials of your workstation to access your folders
- They'd need the link local/private IP of your router, Admin username and password to change any router settings
- If you think they're messing around with anything in the future, you can change the ESSID or hide it, and change the WPA/WEP password. all you need to do is find the local IP of your router, type it into any web browser, and insert the credentials that either your ISP provided you with, or you set up yourself when you got it.

[sara_dippity]

Okay, I know they don't have that stuff, so cool. Thanks, I'll sleep well with my extra twenty bucks.

[wulbs]

Originally Posted by sara_dippity

Okay, so I have a router and all I know about security is having a password for it and not sharing my folders. Only now I have new downstairs neighbors who are willing to pay half my internet costs if they can use my router to get their playstation online (which is a relief on my budget) so I said okay and gave them the password. Am I an idiot? Is there a way they can use their playstation to mess with my files even though they aren't shared, or am I just paranoid?

Use the mac filtering feature of your router, get the mac address of their playstation and allow it in your router.

[BrokenAtari]

Originally Posted by wulbs

Use the mac filtering feature of your router, get the mac address of their playstation and allow it in your router.

Ya, that will prevent them from adding other "unauthorized" equipment onto the network. Are you running wep or wpa?

[wulbs]

Originally Posted by BrokenAtari

Ya, that will prevent them from adding other "unauthorized" equipment onto the network. Are you running wep or wpa?

I'm using WPA2 together with mac filtering in my belkin router, I don't use WEP for it can crack by a backtrack.

[Chipeater]

Originally Posted by wulbs

Use the mac filtering feature of your router, get the mac address of their playstation and allow it in your router.

That's a good point. So, even if the neighbor tells someone else the password they couldn't connect the the wireless access point because there MAC address isn't allowed.

[~Darkseeker~]

Sara, i second/third the recommendation of enabling MAC filtering. Do you know if your router supports it?

[krone6]

One problem, they'll just mac spoof. Now they just got by it. But it's slim depending on how "smart" they are, and we all know the general % of the public and computers. hehe.

[~Darkseeker~]

Originally Posted by krone6

One problem, they'll just mac spoof. Now they just got by it. But it's slim depending on how "smart" they are, and we all know the general % of the public and computers. hehe.

I'd eat my hat if more than 0.1% of the population would know how to even modify a hardware address, let alone know how to find the list of allowed MACs.