Cybersecurity company ESET shared the causes of weak links and how to avoid them. Wi-Fi, which is the way of connecting the radio signals sent from the modem with the devices we use around the smart home, is the most widely used technology protocol. From smart TVs to home security cameras and from smart doorbells to digital assistants, many devices need an internet connection, and some may require high speed to work well. However, this is not always possible for various reasons. Cybersecurity company ESET shared its assessments of how to identify and fix the issue.
With more working from home now, it's important to have good wireless connectivity with laptops and desktops. Today, there can be two or more home users on Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi radio signals can be blocked by walls and other objects or neighbors. Even if the Wi-Fi itself is working as it should, there are many other elements that can be responsible for a slow internet connection. Therefore, the first step should be to find out the base speed provided by your internet service provider. Then check the current Wi-Fi performance with a speed tester.
What's wrong with my Wi-Fi connection?
Here are some of the top reasons for slow internet speeds on Wi-Fi connection:
Modem location: It may be too far from your device or it may be physically blocked, which means wireless signals are not being transmitted.
Modem age and condition: The device may need a refresh or may have outdated hardware that could affect performance.
Number of devices: The home network may be overloaded with too many devices trying to connect at the same time.
Bandwidth-intensive applications: If any of these devices are running particularly bandwidth-intensive applications, such as gaming software, there will be less bandwidth available to the rest of the house, causing lag.
Wi-Fi frequency bands and channels: Wireless signals work in different frequency bands and channels. If your neighbors signal is tuned to the same channel as your home signal, it may have exceeded the capacity in your area. If your modem isn't doing this automatically, try switching to reduce signal interference. The 5GHz frequency band offers the possibility to choose from more Wi-Fi channels than the 2,4GHz spectrum. Coverage may be better with the first, but speed will be better on the second spectrum.
ISP throttling: Some service providers may throttle customers' internet speeds in case they exceed data usage or there is excessive network congestion.
Wi-Fi thieves: Sometimes your neighbors can be the reason for slow internet speed in your home. They may try to use your Wi-Fi connection for free by guessing your password.
VPNs: These help improve online privacy, but they can also slow down the internet connection as they add an extra step between your device and the internet.
Malware: If devices are compromised by malicious code, this code may be running in the background, communicating with other machines over the internet and using memory; all this can negatively affect performance.
What to do to fix your slow Wi-Fi connection
According to experts at cybersecurity company ESET, there are a few very simple things you can do to speed up your slow Wi-Fi connection. It may be helpful to try all of the following one by one to see if they have any effect on internet speeds:
Put the modem in an accessible place in the middle of the house.
Change your Wi-Fi frequency band or channel if the current one is overloaded with connections.
Consider investing in a Wi-Fi mesh network that will boost the signal to remote areas of the home.
Restart the modem. Install any available hardware updates.
You can replace your existing modem with a new one.
You can change the internet service provider or upgrade your broadband package.
Check how many devices are working in the home network and disconnect unused devices.
Close bandwidth-hungry apps and tasks running in the background.
Use strong and unique administrator and Wi-Fi passwords.
Change Windows power settings to "high performance".
If you're using a VPN, consider upgrading to a more optimized VPN version.
Malware running secretly on your devices may be hijacking bandwidth and computing power and throttling performance. Minimize the risk of this happening by:
Change the factory default password for all devices
Use a long, strong, and unique Wi-Fi password.
Use security software from a reputable vendor to protect devices and laptops.
Use VPN for connection.
Keep devices, including the modem, up to date with the latest firmware.
Keep network encryption turned on (ideally, WPA2 or WPA3).
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