Sharing your home’s Wi-Fi password to friends or family who visit may seem harmless, but you could be sharing more than you think.
“One easy thing folks can do to protect their network is to set up a Wi-Fi guest network,” said Nicholas De Leon with Consumer Reports.
Sharing a password-protected network provides guest access to all connected devices, which is why Consumer Reports recommends a little-known feature on most routers that offers a quick fix.
That idea is like a network the public can access in your doctor’s office or local coffee shop as it gives your guests access to the internet, but not all the devices on your network.
“There are three reasons why you’d want to set up a Wi-Fi guest network, the first being to improve the privacy and security of your devices,” said De Leon.
A friend’s laptop could unknowingly be infected with malware that could spread to your devices.
“By having this secondary guest network, your stuff is on the primary network, and every other thing is on the secondary network,” said De Leon. “It just keeps your stuff safe because it is kept separate.”
Another benefit to having a guest network, according to De Leon, is having a better performing Wi-Fi network.
Most routers let you set bandwidth limits on a guest network to prevent the connection from slowing down. They also set time limits that can automatically disconnect devices after a set time.
It only takes a few minutes to set up a guest network, even if you’re not tech-savvy.
The first step is to log in to your router’s app or website, go to the settings, and look for “guest network” or a similar option. Activate it, create a strong password and a name that’s easy to identify, and it’s ready to go.
De Leon recommnends printing out a QR code from your router’s app and stick it on the fridge, so guests can then “take their phone, point it at the little QR code and then, boom, they’re connected.”
