If your internet connection isn't working as it should and you've already tried restart the router and establish communication with the technical service, it is not unreasonable to consider that maybe someone connected to our Wi-Fi without our permission.
While it may sound crazy, it's possible that a neighbor has stolen your Wi-Fi password and is enjoying it without your knowledge. But this has a solution, since you can easily find out which intruders are connected to your network and kick them out. We explain what to do and what steps you should follow for find out if anyone is connected to your Wi-Fi and how to "unhook" it from your connection.
How to know if someone is connected to your Wi-Fi network without permission
Not only should you protect yourself when browsing public Wi-Fi networks, you should also protect yourself when using your private connection at home. One of the possible reasons why your Wi-Fi network is not performing well is because i devices that shouldn't be connected to it, that is there are intruders in the connection.
To find out if there are devices connected to your router without your permission, you must first see which devices are connected to it. When you have the full list, you have to analyze each device until you know if they are yours or correspond to others users who have taken the password for your router.
To do this, you first need to know which devices are connected. In the Play Store you can find a multitude of free applications for your Android phone or tablet, although we recommend 3: Fing, WiFiman and Who's on my Wi-Fi ?. Below we leave you the links to download them.
These applications, and the others you can find in the store with the same functions, are simply network scanners that reveal who is connecting to your Wi-Fi. Knowing this information, you will know if it is your cell phone, tablet and other technological devices, or there is a strange intruder.
To differentiate your devices from those that are connected without your permission, you must look at their names, their IP addresses or MAC addresses. These are the identifying data of each device and therefore will help you detect which ones should not be present.
Apart from these applications, you can also see which devices are connected to your Wi-Fi network if you enter the router settings from your Android. One of the ways to do this is enter the address "192.168.1.1" in any web browser. Next, you will need to enter your username and password, which are usually both 'admin' (a major weakness).
Access to router configuration may vary by carrier. For example, in the case of Vodafone, the user is “vodafone” and the password appears on the router itself. Once inside the configuration, you will be able to see which devices are connected to the Wi-Fi network, detecting which ones do it without permission. Once recognized, it's time to eject them from the network in so it can work normally again.
How to kick intruders off your Wi-Fi and prevent them from re-entering
Let's get to the important point, how can you hunt down those intruders who have taken over your Wi-Fi network? There are several methods of doing this, but the simplest is change the router password so that only you can log in to connect. To do this, you will need to enter the router configuration and change the password you had so far. Of course, you should choose a complicated alphanumeric code and not limit yourself to the dangerous 12345.
Another method is use the NetCut application, the whose installation file can be downloaded for free on your Android or on your computer. After installing the application or program, you need to scan the network to find all connected devices and eject those that are not yours by selecting them and clicking on the «Cut» option.
Once you've chased away the intruders, it's time to power up your Wi-Fi network to prevent them from re-entering. Once you have configured a high-difficulty password, you need to disable the WPS function of the router, which allows access to the connection with a PIN code of only 8 digits. It is much easier for hackers to discover this code and access the router, so it is best to disable it.
In addition to expelling the intruder, it is also recommended to filter its MAC address in the router configuration in so that the same device cannot reconnect in the future, even if it knows the password. Speaking of the latter, you can change it quite frequently to make sure only you know.
Finally, it is a good idea to turn off the router whenever you know you will not use it, especially if it will be for a considerably long period. This way you can be sure that no one uses your Wi-Fi network without your permission to connect to the Internet.
If you need more tips, we recommend that you take a look at our guide to properly set up your Wi-Fi and prevent it from being stolen, where you'll find even more useful tips and tricks.
