kuzushi said:

I am new to networks so I need some simple explanations.  I have Vista.  I have a D-Link router and when I enter the router address in the web browser, enter my password, and go to “status” under LAN computers it has my PC listed and another one called “unknown”.  Is my neighbor latching on to my internet or is this how it is supposed to read?  I only have one computer in the house, but I had to get a router to have the Net Talk device for my telephone.  I changed the password and I still see the second computer mentioned.

What all should I be doing to make sure my network is secure?   Should I be doing more than changing the password?  I noticed that when I go to start/connect to/and disconnect from my network it asks for my security key, but when I enter this it says it is wrong.  However I still remain connected to the internet so I really do not know if my connection is secure.  How can I test it?

Thank you in advance to all who help.

Kuzuhi

It sounds to me like you might have a neighbor connecting to your router.

I do not have a D-Link router, but a Linksys.  So I will give you some things to look for.

The password you changed I have to assume is for getting into the setup of your router and has nothing to do with security of the wireless connection.  It does provide security from someone getting into your router and making changes in settings.

After you get into the setup area of your router look for a tab or link to the wireless area.  In the wireless area will be a place to setup security and a passkey for the wireless.  If your router has a WPA-Pre-Shared Key setting this it the setting you should use.  If this setting is not on your router you should study the manual and choose the most secure setting your router has.  It will also give you a passkey you will need to enter into the network connection on your computer.

Your router should have some way to reset the router to factory settings if you make changes and are lost or locked out.  You should be able to find this information in the manual.

Last Sat Foster Braun called me and wanted to know how to get in touch with you.  He was interested in talking with you about backing up files that we had chatted about in the forums.  So if you see fit use the contact us feature from top of most IA pages and give him a way to contact you.

Please remember I do not have D-Link router so I can not give you exact directions, but only general instructions.

kuzushi said:

Thank you, and I did send a message to the Contact Us tab. I went to the
wireless section and choose WPA-Pre-Shared Key. Something happened since the
screen was working for a while. It gave me a long pre-shared key, and said I
will need it to "configure the correct settings on my wireless client
adapters.” It did not tell me how or where to configure my wireless client
adapters. I do not even know what those are. I find the manual to be very
confusing and written for somone who knows about this stuff already. 

I do not know what to do next, and I do not know if my network is secure. Is
there some way to test it? I only have the one computer and it seems to still
work fine on the internet. Thank you again for your continued help.

Kuzushi

I am having to guess a little here.  Do you have your computer connected to the router with an ether-net cable (sometimes called hard wired)?  If this is the case this may be why your connection does not change when you set up the security on the wireless.

Have you setup the net talk device?  This may be the unknown item  you are seeing.  The place to enter the long passkey you received when you setup the security will be on any device you are using wireless (such as your net talk device).

With my setup here I have 3 desk top computers hard wired and 2 laptops wireless.  My hardwired computers do not use the wireless thus are not affected by the wireless security.