--- title: UPnP: Devices Opening Their Own Doors | High Desert Internet url: https://hdiss.net/glossary/upnp/ business: High Desert Internet Services (HDISS) phone: 775-575-9593, 775-391-5660 email: info@hdiss.net mailing_address: Home base: 200 S Virginia St, Suite 760, Reno NV 89501 (dispatch office, not a walk-in store). Mail: Billing Dept., PO Box 11353, Reno NV 89510 hours: Office open 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, seven days a week. Network watched around the clock. type: Fixed wireless internet service provider (homes and small businesses), web hosting, customer email, domain registration service_area: Northern Nevada - Washoe, Lyon, Storey, Churchill and Douglas counties and Carson City; availability is checked address by address (line of sight to a tower) plans: Bronze $50/mo up to 500 Mbps down, up to 200 Mbps up; Silver $75/mo up to 800 down, up to 200 up; Gold $99/mo up to 1 Gig down, up to 200 up; ask about the up to 1 Gig / 1 Gig ultra-low-latency service no_online_purchase: true (check your address or call; existing customers pay at https://www2.fernley.net/hdiss/onlinepay/paymentform.cfm) since: 2002 --- - [Home](https://hdiss.net/) - [Glossary](https://hdiss.net/glossary/) - UPnP # UPnP UPnP lets a game console or camera ask your router to forward a port without you doing it. The convenience comes with a security cost. A radio tower at sunset. Stock photo: Adobe Stock. [Photo credits](https://hdiss.net/photo-credits/) ## What is UPnP? Without UPnP, you open a port by hand. With it, a device on your network sends the router a request, and the router creates a rule on its own. That is why a console may report an open NAT type with no setup. See [port forwarding](https://hdiss.net/glossary/port-forwarding/) for the manual way. The cost is that any program on any device can make the same request, including one that should not be there. Because it runs by itself, UPnP leaves little trace for a person to notice. Many routers list the rules it made on an advanced page, which is where to look. ## Why does it matter on a fixed wireless connection? CISA's home network security page says to install a firewall at the boundary of the home network and, on UPnP, "you should therefore disable UPnP unless you have a specific need for it." The page is archived and may be dated, so check your router maker's current advice too. For households on a fixed wireless link, UPnP changes nothing about the outdoor connection. It only affects what your own router lets in. ## What should I do about it? If your devices work with UPnP off, leave it off. If a game or camera needs it, turn it on for that need and check the router's list of rules now and then. Remove rules for devices you no longer own. A tidy router is easier to help. If you are stuck, call 775-575-9593 with the model of the router and what the device reports. Our guide [secure your home network](https://hdiss.net/guides/secure-your-home-network/) gives the wider steps, and [gaming, NAT, ping and what to ask](https://hdiss.net/guides/gaming-nat-ping-and-what-to-ask/) covers console cases. ### Sources - [cisa.gov/news-events/news/home-network-security](https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/news/home-network-security) (CISA, archived page; read 2026-10-15) - [cisa.gov/news-events/alerts/2013/01/29/security-flaws-universal-plug-and-play-unplug-dont-](https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/alerts/2013/01/29/security-flaws-universal-plug-and-play-unplug-dont-play) (did not load 2026-10-15) ### Talk to a person - Call [775-575-9593](tel:7755759593) [775-391-5660](tel:7753915660) Open 9-5 every day - Email [info@hdiss.net](mailto:info@hdiss.net) [Check my address](https://hdiss.net/check-availability/#check) ### Related terms - [Port forwarding](https://hdiss.net/glossary/port-forwarding/) - [NAT (network address translation)](https://hdiss.net/glossary/nat/) - [Firewall](https://hdiss.net/glossary/firewall/) - [Router](https://hdiss.net/glossary/router/) - [Secure your home network: a ten-minute checklist](https://hdiss.net/guides/secure-your-home-network/) Local since 2002 Fixed wireless from towers in Northern Nevada. Three plans, no contracts, local support, 4.8 on Google from 36 reviews. [About High Desert](https://hdiss.net/about/)