How your home network can be hacked and how to prevent it
Introduction
Thanks to technology, jobs that used to require us to physically commute to work can now be done at home in a pair of comfy pajamas. A 2018 report by Global Workplace Analytics showed that over 5 million Americans work remotely. This trend doesn’t look like it’ll slow down any time soon, and there are plenty of good reasons for that: remote work has been linked to a panoply of benefits for workers, as well as fewer overhead costs for employers.
However, working remotely creates new problems and challenges, especially in terms of network security. Home networks aren’t protected by the same rigorous cybersecurity protocols that corporate networks have access to. Instead, you’re left to fend for yourself!
On that note, let’s talk about how to detect hackers on your network and what to do if your network is hacked.
Can your home network be hacked?
The short answer? Yes, it’s absolutely possible for your home network to get hacked. There are a couple of ways hackers can gain access to your network.
One common method is to guess the password. It sounds simple, but routers often come with a preset default password that the manufacturer uses for all devices. A hacker could easily look up the default password associated with a given type of router and use it to access countless devices.
Hackers can also exploit security flaws in the router’s firmware. Since firmware is updated so infrequently, hackers have ample time to discover and exploit security flaws before they’re patched. Infrequent firmware updates leave 83% of home Wi-Fi routers vulnerable to attack, according to a study by The American Consumer Institute (ACI).
Your home network is naturally vulnerable, which means the responsibility falls on you, the end user, to keep an (Read more...)
*** This is a Security Bloggers Network syndicated blog from Infosec Resources authored by Christine McKenzie. Read the original post at: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/infosecResources/~3/0NQl7qh6XIU/
