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So, a couple of days ago, I got an email newsletter from Steve Bass, who used to be a columnist for PCWorld, and whom I totally enjoy. I find the fact that they just booted him after umpteen years despicable. I always enjoyed reading his stuff.
But, I digress…
He has a piece in there about router hijacking. Apparently, if you haven’t changed your router password, like so many of us hadn’t … duh… your router is susceptible to attack. The issue starts with a trojan that allows hackers to hijack your router and then, everything that you send or receive goes through them first. Not good at all. I immediately remembered that my virus protection software had caught a trojan a week ago, but still, who wants to have their router hijacked, right?
I had been noticing a slowdown, too, so that really scared me. I thought that I’d been hijacked. Who knows? Maybe I was… And then again, read on…
I’ve learned a great deal since I got that router, but it just didn’t occur to me to change the password. At the time, I’m sure I wouldn’t have known how. I mean, I’m pretty techy, but the hardware stuff still alludes me somewhat. Anyway, I figured, OK… I can do this.
So, got out my notes for the router, and logged in.
Come to find that some of my neighbors have been pirating signal from me. Oh, did I feel like a dummy! No wonder I was losing speed. I was allowing the whole neighborhood to use my broadband. What a dope!
So, I quickly changed my password, and then, tried to allow only my computers. There are 5 in this house. Not so easy. But I did it anyway. Thought I was pretty smart, too.
And then, I couldn’t get back in.
I forgot to add my main computer!
So, guess what? I had to reinstall my router and start all over again.
It’s fixed now, but if you have a router and haven’t changed the password or only allowed your computers, you’re in danger of not just slowing down but of having your identity stolen and a whole lot more.
Scary stuff, eh?
Popularity: 27% [?]
November 22nd, 2008 at 10:28 am
Extremely useful to people like me who live in hostels. I have been ecxperiencing slowdown of my broadband and as per this wonderful info, i will change the password. Thanks for this wonderful piece of information. Really beneficial.
November 22nd, 2008 at 1:35 pm
Routers should come with instructions that says something like this in bold letters:
IMPORTANT: Please change your router password. Failure to do so is a security threat.
Or better yet the router setup should ask you for a router password as the first step. It should also not allow you to use an insecure password.
November 22nd, 2008 at 1:37 pm
This is very sound advice. I live in an apartment complex with my own network setup but before I had a router setup I could easily pick out any signal I wanted and use it. Keep in mind that you are responsible for whatever information is transmitted via your connection so if one of you neighbors enjoys child pornography or is plotting a terrorist attack than you could be in trouble too.
Nowadays routers are very easy to encrpyt and protect so people are just being lasy by not doing it.
November 23rd, 2008 at 2:40 am
OMG that is a very scary thought that people could do this!! That is the last thing on most people’s minds is to change the passcode on our routers so I see why it would be vulnerable to hackers but thanks for the advice I will be sure to use it!!!
November 27th, 2008 at 11:42 am
It is really different sort of hijacking and i dont believe that i router can be hijacked.well thank you for giveing me such info.
November 27th, 2008 at 5:12 pm
@ramo -
Why would you say that, Ramo? I can see how it might. I’m not saying for sure that my router was hijacked, but anything with a password can be hacked.
Changing your router password just makes good sense.
– Pat
November 29th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
Oh wow… our home network has been slowing down lately - I never thought to change the password to the router! It took me a couple of tries, but it was worth it. It’s nice to have that extra wall of security, so thanks for reminding me about it!
November 29th, 2008 at 3:35 pm
@Sam -
You got it, Sam… Never occured to me, either. I wasn’t as tech-savvy when I first got the router. Now, I feel like such a ditz that I didn’t think to do it sooner.
Happy to have helped!
–Pat