How it works
When we talk about routers, we’re actually talking about more than one thing. Your home wireless network is made up of three different parts:
- The modem – the bridge between your home network and the internet.
- The router – what connects all the devices on your home network, and sends traffic in and out.
- Access points – these allow your devices to connect to the network wirelessly.
The device that your internet service provider (ISP) gives you when you sign up is all these things in one. Your ISP probably calls it a modem, but most of us refer to it as a router.
Why it matters
Everything that comes in and goes out of your home wireless network goes through your router.
It's important to secure your router so people can’t access your home network without your knowledge — or use your WiFi for free.
The risks
If you don't take steps to protect your router, you leave your home network open to attack. Someone could gain access to your network or your devices. An attacker could also use your devices as part of a denial-of-service attack, where many computers are joined together to attack someone else. If this happened, it's unlikely that you'd even know about it.