Showing posts with label Wireless Network. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wireless Network. Show all posts

30/11/2014

How to Connect to Protected Wi-Fi Hotspots for Free Without Any Passwords


Depending on who you ask, internet connectivity should be a basic human right. With Google recently embarking on a project to provide internet capabilities to remote corners of the world using balloons and satellites while Facebook attempts to do the same with unmanned drones, the concept of free web access is steadily gaining steam. It's this train of thought that sparked the idea for a new crowd-sourced database of Wi-Fi access point passwords. The service uses an app called Instabridge to allow users to share passwords for Wi-Fi networks that they've connected to, then provides a map of all of these access points to other users.
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Instabridge relies on user submissions to grow its list of connections, and thousands of network credentials have already been submitted. So if you're ready to join in the fun, I'll review the app in detail below.
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1. Install Instabridge Instabridge- is available for free on the Google Play Store, but it is also available for Mac and Windows computers.
2. Set Up Your Preferences. When you first launch Instabridge, you'll have to go through a one-time setup process. First, tap I am new then review and Accept the Terms of Service.
Next, Instabridge will ask you to verify your phone number. This is done so that your friends will be able to find you and connect to your shared Wi-Fi networks, but it is not required. If you'd rather not share your phone number, hit Skip. Otherwise, hit OK.
If you opted to verify your phone number, a text message will be sent to your phone and Instabridge will automatically detect it. Once that has happened, a button will show up in the upper right-hand corner where you can hit Done.
Next, you'll be given a chance to review your settings. From here, you can set your phone to automatically connect to My own networks, Friend Networks (networks shared with you by friends), and Community Networks (networks shared by other users). The last two options help improve the Instabridge network and app, so leave them turned on and press the Done button up top.
3. Add Your Wi-Fi Networks. If you are connected to a Wi-Fi access point when setup has finished, the app will automatically ask if you would like to save and share the login credentials for that network. If you are not currently connected, you can get to this same interface at a later time from the app's main screen. Under the Networks you can connect to field, you will see your current Wi-Fi connection. Tap the Share or backup this hotspot button to begin. Enter your password on the following screen, then hit Next. From here, tap the Share with field then select who you'd like to share this Wi-Fi connection's password with. If it's a public access point, feel free to contribute to the cause and share the password with All Users. Otherwise, if this is your home network, it would be best to choose either Friends or Just me, no one else for security reasons. With the Friends option, you'll be given a chance to select which friends to share this connection information with. They will need to have the app installed on their device to connect to your network. You can view the amount of times that other users have connected to networks that you've shared by tapping the second tab from the app's home screen.
4. Connect to Free Wi-Fi Networks Instabridge makes it easy to discover free Wi-Fi connections in your area. From the app's main screen, simply tap the third tab (the one with the Earth icon) to begin. Grey dots represent public Wi-Fi connections that require payment or restrict access in some regard. Pink dots mark free, open Wi-Fi connections that are available for you to use. Tap any of the dots, and you'll be taken into Google Maps so that you can navigate to within range of the signal. When you're ready to connect to one of these networks, simply tap it from Networks you can connect to field on the app's main screen, and connection will occur automatically.
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16/11/2014

How to Encrypt Your Wireless Network


If you have Cable, DSL, or some other form of high-speed Internet, chances are, you've purchased a wireless-capable router so that you can connect to the Internet via your notebook PC, smartphone, or any other wireless-enabled device you have in your home. Many of you out there may be using a wireless router that is 5 years old or more. These devices tend to be set up and forgotten for the most part. Once it's set up, it just sort of does its thing, save for the occasional glitch that requires you to reboot it. When you first set up your wireless router did you turn on encryption so that a password was required to access your wireless network? Maybe you did, maybe you didn't.
Here's a quick way to find out if your wireless network is using encryption:
1. Open your smartphone's wireless network settings (check your smartphone's help manual for details).
2. Look for your wireless network's SSID (network name) in the list of available networks.
3. Check to see if your wireless network has a padlock icon next to it, if it does, then you are using at least basic encryption. Although you may have encryption turned on, you may be using an out dated and easily hacked form of wireless encryption so keep reading.
4. Check to see if your wireless network configuration tells you what type of wireless security is being used to protect your network. You will likely see either WEP, WPA, WPA2, or something similar. If you see anything besides WPA2, you will need to change the encryption settings on your wireless router or possibly upgrade its firmware, or buy a new wireless router if your current one is too old to support an upgrade to WPA2.
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Why You Need Encryption and Why WEP Encryption is Weak
If your wireless network is wide open with no encryption enabled, you are practically inviting neighbors and other free loaders to steal the bandwidth that you're paying good money for. Maybe you're the generous type, but if you are experiencing slow Internet speeds, it might be because you have a bunch of folks leeching off your wireless network. Just a few years ago, Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) was the standard for securing wireless networks. WEP was eventually cracked and is now easily bypassed by even the most novice hacker thanks to cracking tools available on the Internet. After WEP came Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA). WPA too had flaws and was replaced by WPA2. WPA2 isn't perfect, but it is currently the best available offering for protecting home-based wireless networks. If you set up your Wi-Fi router many years ago then you could be using one of the old hackable encryption schemes such as WEP. You should consider changing to WPA2.

How To Enable WPA2 Encryption on Wireless Router
1. Log into your wireless router's administrator console. This is usually done by opening a browser window and typing in the address of your wireless router (usually http://192.168.0.1, http://192.168.1.1, http://10.0.0.1, or something similar). You will then be prompted for the admin name and password.
2. Locate the "Wireless Security" or "Wireless Network" settings page.
3. Look for the Wireless Encryption Type setting and change it to WPA2-PSK (you may see a WPA2-Enterprise settings. The enterprise version of WPA2 is intended more for corporate-type environments and requires a much more complicated set up process). If you don't see WPA2 as an option, then you may have to either upgrade your wireless router's firmware to add the capability (check your router manufacturer's website for details) or, if your router is too old to be upgraded via firmware, you may have to purchase a new wireless router that supports WPA2.
4. Create a strong wireless network name (SSID) coupled with a strong wireless network password (Pre-shared Key).
5. Click "Save" and "Apply". The wireless router may have to reboot for the settings to take effect.
6. Reconnect all your wireless devices by selecting the wireless network name and entering in the new password on each device. You should periodically check your router manufacturer's website for firmware updates that they might release to fix security vulnerabilities associated with your router. The updated firmware may also contain new security features as well.
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