Secure Your Home Network: A Ten-Minute Checklist

Your router is the front door to everything on your network: laptops, cameras, TVs, a work computer. The government advice for locking it is short and the same across agencies. This checklist follows CISA and the FTC, in the order that gives the most protection for the least effort. Set a timer for ten minutes.

Minutes 1 to 3: the passwords

Open the router's admin page. The find your router address article helps if you do not know where it is. CISA's tip is to “change your router's administrator password to help protect it from an attack using default credentials.” The FTC adds that you should set two unique passwords, one for the Wi-Fi network and one for the router's admin login, because an attacker who controls the admin account can change the Wi-Fi password.

Pick something long, not tied to your name, address or the router brand, and store it in a password manager. Our password guide explains what makes one strong.

Minutes 4 to 5: encryption

Find the wireless security setting. CISA recommends the strongest encryption protocol available, which it names as WPA3 Personal with AES. The FTC calls WPA3 the newer and strongest encryption available and says WPA2 Personal is the fallback if WPA3 is not offered. If your router only offers WPA or WEP, update its software first; if WPA2 or WPA3 is still missing, the FTC says to get a new router (see end-of-life routers).

Minutes 6 to 7: updates

Check for the latest firmware on the manufacturer's site, or in the router's update page. CISA says to upgrade firmware, since updates fix flaws and security vulnerabilities. The FTC suggests registering the router for update notices and asking your internet provider whether it sends updates automatically. If your router has an automatic update setting, turn it on. The firmware update article shows the general steps.

Minutes 8 to 9: switch off the risky extras

Both agencies list the same three features to disable. Remote management lets someone change settings from the internet. WPS, Wi-Fi Protected Setup, has a PIN design flaw that CISA says makes brute-force attacks easier. UPnP, Universal Plug and Play, lets software on your network open holes in the firewall; CISA says malware on your network could use it to bypass the firewall. CISA also suggests changing the default network name to one that does not reveal your identity or location.

If one of these breaks something you use, turn it back on for that purpose only, and note why.

Minute 10: a guest network, then log out

The FTC advises a guest network with its own name and password. It limits who knows your main password and keeps guest devices off your main network. Our guest network guide has the how-to. Then log out of the admin account, which the FTC lists as its own step, and confirm the router's built-in firewall is enabled.

Last, glance at the list of connected devices. CISA suggests monitoring for unknown device connections. If you see one you do not recognize, change the Wi-Fi password and check again.

What is not on your side of the line?

This checklist covers your router and your devices. The outdoor antenna, radio, power supply and injector belong to High Desert under the service agreement, and you do not need to touch them. Do not climb to the antenna or open the outdoor radio. If something looks wrong, call 775-575-9593 any day from 9 to 5.

If you are still choosing a provider, send your address through the check form. A person looks at the path from the nearest tower and calls you back, and you can ask about router setup on that call.