Router Security – The Default Router IP Address

The best way to configure your network and connect it to the Internet is by using a default IP address. There are two different types of IP addresses Ipv4 and IPv6. Every single device you connect to the network gets a unique IP address. The addresses used in the network can be divided in public and private.

The public IP address is the one which can be detected online. On the other hand the private address can’t be found from the Internet. If you’ve ever wondered, “what is my IP?”, knowing the difference between these types is a good first step to understanding network configurations.

If you don’t have experience with networks but want to learn more this article is for you.

The IP address is consisted of so called bits. It is presented in the form of a four groups of digits divided by dots. These range from 1.1.1.1 up to 255.255.255.255. A combination of these is definitely the ideal way to connect your devices to the network. The IPs are generally used for internal network as well as external network operations. The IP addresses are divided in groups or so called classes – A, B and C. These classes ate reserved for private use and the most popular IPs of this range are the ones starting with 192.168.x.x (you can replace X with numbers from 1 to 255). For example, one of the most used IP addresses today is 192.168.2.1.

Probably the best thing and definitely one of the first one you should do when you start tweaking the security of your network is to change the default router IP address. Additionally, the router has a built-in DHCP server functionality so all devices get a unique IP. However, if a device obtains and IP which is already assigned to another device in the same network then it is possible that an IP conflict will occur.

We have already mentioned that one of the preferred IP addresses today used to configure the router is 192.168.2.1. If you want to connect your system to the network, you have to confirm that the configuration of the default Gateway is adequate. The first thing to do is to edit the line where this default gateway is mentioned for the first time. If you don’t do this and don’t spend time in securing the network you can be easily prone to hacker’s attacks.

Therefore it is highly recommended to work on the network security immediately.

The types of hacker’s attacks are varied and they are quite possible in your network although you have configured it before. It really doesn’t matter which subnet you use, the known vulnerabilities and problems of any network will be exploited if your system is under attack.

In order to configure your network in the best possible way you have to pay special attention when you setup the router for the first time. For starters, you have to learn how to find the default router IP address and later use it to login to the router. Probably the easiest way to do this is with the help of the Command Prompt in Windows. Practically, the only thing you have to do is to launch the Command prompt and type a special command – ipconfig – which will reveal lots of network related data and there you can see the Default Gateway. You will recognize the numbers next to it – 192.168.2.1 or something similar.

Of course there are other ways you can sue to find the router IP address but this is the best and most reliable one. Alternatively, you can always check the user’s manual or the sticker on the router but if someone has changed the default IP before, these are of no use. Also, you can use the Control Panel but we think that when we compare it with the Command Prompt method, it is way more complicated.