A wireless network’s convenience is unrivaled. Wi-Fi is so widely used and effective, in fact, that some newly established small businesses have chosen to completely forgo a wired network in favor of the quick 802.11n wireless standard.
However, proprietors of small businesses and owners of smart homes should also consider setting up a guest Wi-Fi network. The wireless network you and your staff use have a different SSID than a visitor network. It is made expressly to give visitors access to the Internet while maintaining the security and segregation of your primary Wi-Fi network.
Why set up a guest Wi-Fi network?
Providing guests with Wi-Fi makes it feasible to be both welcoming and secure. A guest Wi-Fi network on your router is effectively a different access point. The guest network is a separate point from your home network that gives you access to the Internet but not your home network. Your home gadgets are all connected to one point and formed into a network. It is intended for guests to connect with, as the name implies.
A guest network benefits everyone: Your data is safe, and your friends and acquaintances don’t feel cut off from the outside world. The malware on a visitor’s smartphone won’t be able to access your family photo collection or other crucial files. Having a trusted buddy connect to your printer is one thing, especially if you are confident in their knowledge of the necessary equipment security precautions. But what if your friend’s guest enters your house carrying a computer that has already been compromised with malware?
Malicious actors can start stealing important data or compromising other devices the moment they log in to your network to read their email or scroll through social media. A visitor could accidentally shut down your complete work-from-home arrangement or give a hacker access to your family’s bank account information in the course of a dinner party.
Is Guest Wi-Fi secure?
The most secure method of providing your guests with internet access through your current network is through guest Wi-Fi. Your home’s WiFi-connected gadgets could become infected with the virus if your visitors connect to the main network via a compromised or malware-infested device.
However, the virus or malware cannot enter your home network if the affected device is linked to guest Wi-Fi. Additionally, guest Wi-Fi adds an additional layer of security to protect IoT devices, such as smart TVs, which are more prone to security flaws.
A Guest Wi-Fi Network’s Advantages
Check some of the listed advantages of Guest Wi-Fi Networks below.
Boost privacy and security
Smart home privacy concerns are serious, but you shouldn’t have to sacrifice convenience for safety. Here are four things you can do to help make your smart homes more secure. The greater security that a guest network provides is its main benefit. You may manage who has access to your company’s network of PCs, servers, storage devices, and printers by segmenting the network in this way. It is crucial since sophisticated Trojans and malware can enter a visitors’ laptop or mobile device. Then, they can use the devices to attack machines on your network.
Moreover, by setting up a guest wireless network for visiting customers, clients, and vendors, you enjoy other benefits. You can keep your principal network’s security password a secret. Given that many small organizations probably utilize a static passphrase for internal users, this is a crucial point to consider. The alternative, which is not a viable strategy, is to change the passphrase after each group of visitors.
Enhanced convenience
The length and difficulty of the password are other important factors. That is despite the fact that the type of encryption technique utilized determines how secure a wireless transmission is. As you may guess, correctly entering a 25-character passphrase can be challenging and error-prone.
On the other hand, entering an 8 or 10-character code is significantly simpler. The guest network is separated, which reduces risks even if it is more vulnerable to brute force attacks. Change the guest network passphrase frequently for improved security, print the most recent code on slips of paper, and then distribute them to your allowed guests as required.
Regulating network usage
You can restrict the Internet resources that guests have access to by setting up a guest Wi-Fi network. It makes sense to limit the guest network to a speed that allows reasonable access without impairing the network performance available to your employees rather than giving guests the same priority in bandwidth.
Not all Wi-Fi access points support the ability to install several networks. Although, this shouldn’t be a problem in systems designed for corporate use.
Suppose your business doesn’t have business-grade Wi-Fi, and you want to keep your current Wi-Fi infrastructure. You can set up a separate network for visitors.
Collecting user analytics
The ability to track traffic and get crucial user information is another advantage of setting up a Guest Wi-Fi network. Almost everyone makes use of a wirelessly connected device.
In fact, according to recent surveys, the typical American may use up to 4 WiFi-enabled devices every day. You can take advantage of that to learn some useful information about how your company is operating.
The ability to extract some valuable presence statistics is made possible by using software that is linked to the network architecture. Information on footfall, or the number of customers entering your store at one time, traffic patterns, and other information on bandwidth use and the number of devices accessing the network simultaneously. This kind of information can significantly affect your business operations and bottom line. This knowledge will not only help you better serve your guests but will also enable you to modify your staffing and cut costs.
Faster Wi-Fi
In actuality, how many devices you need to support is one of the most crucial queries to ask when constructing your wireless internet structure.
Although it could appear that this is less significant than the number of users, if it is undervalued, it can actually have a significant impact. Although not the most challenging issue to resolve, it will be apparent.
An inadequate structure may be to blame if you’re currently encountering poor Wi-Fi speeds or less-than-ideal performance from your wireless network or have done so since expanding your company or organization.
Password
A complex password may protect your primary network. But guest networks are simple to use and can be stored in devices for quick connectivity. You can make a simple password that is simple to share with your visitor Wi-Fi. That makes it simple to make routine changes without affecting all the equipment linked to the main network.