Wi-Fi is great for staying connected to the internet, but unsecured Wi-Fi can be dangerous to your personal information. An important key to protecting your network and data is to keep your router password protected and by changing passwords regularly. With this step, people will not be able to steal your bandwidth! Keep reading to learn how to change your Wi-Fi password.
Step
Step 1. Go to your router's configuration page
The router configuration page can be accessed through a web browser on a computer connected to the network. If you don't know the password and can't connect via Wi-Fi, you can use an Ethernet cable to connect your computer directly to the router. You don't need a Wi-Fi password this way.
- The default router address is 192.168.1.1, 192.168.0.1, 192.168.2.1, or 10.0.1.1 (for Apple) or 10.0.0.1 (for Xfinity). Enter the address into your browser's address bar.
- Run Command Prompt by pressing Windows key + R and typing cmd, if all of the above addresses cannot be used to access the configuration page. After the Command Prompt is run, type ipconfig and press Enter. Look for an active connection in the list and look for the Default Gateway address. This is usually the address of your router.
- If nothing else works, press and hold the Reset button on your router for about 30 seconds to return the device to factory default settings. Then find the default address for that router model and enter the address into your browser.
- Some routers come with configuration software. If you have previously installed configuration software, just use that software instead of a web browser.
Step 2. Enter your router username and password
Each router requires a username and password in order for you to access its interior. If you didn't change it the first time you configured the router, chances are the username is "admin" and the password is "admin" or "password". Of course this is not the same for every model, so look up the exact login information for your model online.
You should press and hold the Reset button on the router for about 30 seconds, if you have changed your login information in the past and have forgotten it, or the router is a gift from someone else and the old owner never resets the device.. The settings will be reset to default, so you can log in with the default username and password
Step 3. Open the Wireless section
Once logged in to your router, look for the Wireless section on the configuration page. The exact name will vary by manufacturer, but usually you should look for a tab or button named "Wireless" or "Wireless Settings/Setup".
If the "Wireless" section has several subsections, just go to the Wireless Security page
Step 4. Change the password
Look for the box named "Password", "Shared Key" or "Passphrase". Enter your new password into this box. Some routers will ask you to type the password again to make sure that you have entered the password correctly.
- Try to create a strong password, which is difficult or even impossible to guess. The password must not be associated with anything private, and must contain an arbitrary number of numbers, random occurrences, and special characters such as "#", "!" and "$".
- You need at least 8 characters to create a strong password.
Step 5. Check your network security type
There are three main types of wireless encryption: WEP, WPA, and WPA2. You should use WPA2 to get the most secure network. You may have trouble connecting older devices, but you can switch to WPA or WPA/WPA2 if this happens. You should NOT choose WEP, as WEP encryption is very easy to crack (it only takes less than 30 minutes to crack a WEP password).
Step 6. Rename your network
While you're still here, take a moment to change the network name if you haven't already. The network name must not contain any personal information, as the name will be publicly broadcast. You can prevent people from trying to hack it by renaming your network. The easiest target to hack is a router with a default name.
Step 7. Save the settings you have changed
When you have entered a new password, click the Apply or Save button. Each router places this button in a different location, but it's usually at the top or bottom of the page. The router will take some time to process the changes, and at this point all currently connected devices will be disconnected.
