Protect your home network

Published: June 10, 2026

Person adjusting a Wi‑Fi router with while holding a smartphone, with a laptop on a wooden desk in the background.

Have you ever wondered how to keep your home network safe? Here are a few simple steps you can take to better protect your home and personal information.

Most home networks rely on a wireless (Wi-Fi) connection. Securing your wireless network is an essential step in protecting your home and personal information. We recommend the following:

How to secure your wireless network

  • Change the default administrator password on the device that controls your wireless network (such as your router). The administrator account allows full access to your network settings.
  • Limit access to trusted users only. Enable strong wireless security and require a password for anyone connecting to your network.
  • Use a strong wireless password that is different from both the administrator password and your network name (Service Set Identifier, or SSID).
  • Protect connected activity. When encryption is enabled, online activity on your wireless network is secured.

For guidance on creating strong, secure passwords, review the Craft strong passwords article.

Need help getting started?

  • Contact your internet service provider.
  • Review the documentation that came with your wireless access point.
  • Watch the first 80 seconds of this video from the SysAdmin, Audit, Network, Security Institute’s Creating a Cyber Secure Home course.

Additional tips to protect your home

Related articles

Illustration of a central server securely exchanging emails and files with laptops and folders through a connected network.

UTsend: Safeguarding data with U of T’s secure file transfer service

May 27, 2026

Traveler’s safety handbook

May 13, 2026

Open-source intelligence (OSINT) self-audit for researchers

May 11, 2026