Is it ok to leave the Internet wireless Router on

[JanetRose]

all the time?

 

[Micca]

The one I have here has been on for 3+ years.

 

[buckler]

I leave mine on all the time. Do you have the security enabled so it can only be accessed by people that have the password? If you don't, your neighbors might be enjoying free internet access.

 

[scrapquitler]

I didn't know that you could turn it off! z

 

[karibritt01]

Never turned it off before except to reboot on occasion.

 

[WDW_lover_in_SC]

I leave mine on all the time. Never had an issue with it.

 

[Carl Fredricksen]

I leave mine on all the time. Do you have the security enabled so it can only be accessed by people that have the password? If you don't, your neighbors might be enjoying free internet access.

Second that. You definitely want to make sure you have a WEP key enabled on the router, or anyone within distance can access the internet through your service. You will then need to enter the WEP key on each PC that accesses through that router.

There are hackers and geeks out there who actually walk/drive around to find people who have open nodes so they can access the internet, sometimes not for good reasons. It's called Warchalking, and they will draw a symbol on the somewhere in front of the place to let others know it is an open node. So if you find someone scribbling on the sidewalk in front of your house, you need to lock that puppy down!

 

[pixiewings71]

ours is always on, but it's pw protected so no one can hack us. we have to have it, we've got an iTouch, a netbook, a laptop....

 

[bicker]

Yup, with security enabled, leaving it on is normal operation. I have some devices in my home (specifically, my TiVo Series 2 DVR) that call in all day long to get program guide data and instructions I might enter into TiVo's online scheduling feature, so I actually am using the connection all day long.

 

[Schminston-Mo]

Adding support to the security access suggestions. There was a local news story where an individual was accessing child porn sites and attempting to make contact to hook up with minors. He was using wireless signals from unsecured home sites. I believe that the authorities initially tracked this down to the home owners before determining an outsider was just stealing their signal. They did eventually catch the guy.

 

[charming23]

I turn mine off at night. I could leave it on as it is password protected but the flashing light bugs me.

 

[CaliforniaDreamin]

Adding support to the security access suggestions. There was a local news story where an individual was accessing child porn sites and attempting to make contact to hook up with minors. He was using wireless signals from unsecured home sites. I believe that the authorities initially tracked this down to the home owners before determining an outsider was just stealing their signal. They did eventually catch the guy.

I remember reading about this...this is becoming a huge issue. Not just an isolated event. It was scary because perfectly innocent people are being arrested for acessing child porn and it's not them at all.

 

[PaulaSue]

How do you lock them down? Anyone explain in a computer for dummies level?

 

[Luv2Scrap]

How do you lock them down? Anyone explain in a computer for dummies level?

Yes, please! I have no idea how to lock mine down, either! Didn't even know I should!

 

[princessmom29]

Windows calls it a security enabled wireless network. You have to have the WEP password to log on. You can store it in your computer and have it use it automatically to log on, so it may have been set up for you. If your connection says it is security enabled they you have a WPE key. If it says unsecured, they you should contact your service provider for info on setting one up.

 

[jimmalru80]

We leave it on all the time.

 

[daughtersrus]

We have left ours on since installing it over 2 years ago. Twice we did have to shut it off and reboot as DD couldn't get on with her laptop. I called the customer service number and they said that on occasion that can happen if the DSL modem is too close to the router. Ours are pretty close together as they are both connected to our desktop. It is password protected as well.

 

[ols386]

I spoke to a technician once, and he said to turn our's off (at work) during stormy weather. He said they can be sensitive to lightening. We've had three of them go bad, and it's always been after a bad storm.

But from what I'm reading here, it doesn't sound like this is the norm.

 

[bicker]

I try to put all sensitive equipment like that behind high-rated surge protectors.

 

[FireDancer]

How do you lock them down? Anyone explain in a computer for dummies level?

I can tell you what you should do but how you should do it will depend on your router. You'll have to read the manual (or help screens) or use the Google for the how:

• Change the default administrator password
• Turn off WAN management
• Turn off universal plug and play (uPNP)
• Make sure WPA or WPA2 encryption is turned on
• Go to this site and use at least the first 20 characters of the middle box (63 random printable ASCII characters)[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,Sans-Serif,MS Sans Serif] as you pre-shared key.[/FONT]

Keep that key somewhere other then on your computer (unless you have an encrypted file system) so you can enter it into additional computers.

There are additional things you can do but these will keep your site safe from people sniffing your packets to get passwords and will keep people off of the router if you don't give them the key.