How to Change WiFi Password and Name

The benefits of wifi to homeowners and business owners are immense. It allows desktops, laptops, smartphones, and other devices to connect to the internet wirelessly in a fast, reliable, and secure manner.

However, due to the wireless nature of this network, a poorly secured wifi can put sensitive personal or business data at risk.

This is because malicious hackers are always on the lookout for weak wifi networks.

To ensure your connections to the internet are always secure, it’s important to keep your router password protected.

Most importantly, changing your wifi password regularly is key to keeping data snoopers off your connections.

If you haven’t changed the default username and password of your router, you should know that the risk of having attackers gain unauthorized access to your network is very high.

In this article, we provide a step-by-step guide on how to change your wifi password and name. The process is pretty straightforward and shouldn’t take much of your time.

Let’s dive right in;

Table of Contents

How to Change Your Wifi Password and Username- A Step-by-Step Guide

1. Search for Your Router’s IP Address

To change the name and name of your wifi password, the first step is accessing your router’s admin page.

Most router models provide a web-based administrative interface that you can easily access by entering your router’s IP address to your favorite browser.

This has to be done on a computer that is connected to the internet

Usually, the default router addresses include;

192.168.1.1
192.168.0.1
192.168.2.1
10.0.1.1 for Apple
10.0.0.1 for Xfinity

Enter the standard addresses into your favorite browser’s address bar. If successful, you will be able to access your router’s admin page.

If neither of these addresses gives you access to the admin page, you can try to find your router IP address on your PC that is running on any version of Windows.

To do this, open the Command Prompt by pressing the Windows key + R, and then enter “cmd” and press Enter.

As soon as you access the Command Prompt area, type in “ipconfig” and press Enter.

Search for the active connection in the list and find the Default Gateway address. The address is displayed to the right of the Default Gateway. This is your router’s default IP address.

If using macOS, click on the Apple menu and then select the ‘System Preferences.”

In the System Preference, click on the Network icon and then select your wireless or Ethernet connection. Next, click Advanced.

Here, go to the TCP/IP tab and search for your router’s address to the right of “Router.”

If every attempt to get your router’s IP address fails, it might be a problem with your router. Try to reset your router by pressing and holding your device for approximately 39 seconds. This will revert it back to factory settings. You’ll now be able to check the default router IP address and enter it in your browser.

2. Access Your Router’s Web Interface

With the router IP address at hand, now it’s time to use it to access the web interface of your device.

Type the router IP into your favorite web browser and press Enter. To access the admin page, you’ll be requested to enter your router username and password to log in.

If you’ve just bought the router, chances are that you’re yet to change the log in details. This means that you’ll need to enter the default router username and password.

And of course, since you’ve never configured the router before, chances are that the default username is either “User admin” or ‘admin” and the password is either “password” or “admin.”

If you can’t seem to figure out the default log in credentials, you’re likely to find the information in your router’s manual.

Almost all routers come with user manuals either printed or in the form of a PDF that you have to access on your router’s manufacturer’s page.

If that doesn’t work, try searching for the default username and password for your specific router model.

Some web pages also offer a huge list of default router usernames and passwords. This page is a good resource for obtaining your model’s login details- http://www.routerpasswords.com/.

If you simply want to change a custom wifi username and password but can’t seem to remember the credentials, the only option you have is t reset the device to its default settings.

Please note that resetting the router to its default settings will most likely lose all your existing connections.

All you have to do is choose different login details and get your connection back.

3. Change your Wifi Network Name and Password

Once you’re logged into your router’s web interface, search for the wifi settings in the wireless area.

Generally, the name varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, but you should typically look for WiFi, Wireless, or Wireless Networks.

Click on each one of them till you find one displays the Network Name or SSID.

Next, change you’re to a new network name from the default “admin” name. You must select a unique name, one that cannot be easily identified.

One of the most common mistakes that most people make when setting their wifi username is choosing some common and weird names like “hack me.”

Routers with such names are often easier for hackers to crack, especially since a lot of people use them.

Try to use a unique and possibly longer router network name to ensure better security of your wifi network.

To help you create a better wifi network name, here are some of the things to consider when setting a new wifi username;

Avoid choosing wifi network names that represent personal information that may be easily identifiable by neighbors and practically anyone else. These include your name, name of your spouse, child, or a well-known family name.
Avoid using fake popular network names like “KFC Wifi Hotspot” or “Starbucks Hotspot.” Sure, everyone who tries to connect to the network won’t gain access. However, because your router is designed to respond to each single connection attempt, it will only lead to slower internet connection speeds and in some cases, drop-offs.

Next, change the password. Like we stated earlier, using the default route password makes your network more susceptible to hacking. A password like “admin” or simply “password” is easy to guess and quite obvious.

The key to enhancing the security of your router device and the network is using a strong and unique password- one that cybercriminals cannot crack.

The password must be fairly long and unique, and must include a combination of numbers, letters, and symbols. It should also be at least 8 characters long.

Here are some few other tips on choosing and managing your new wifi password;
Avoid using common passwords like “12345” or “abcde” or even your birthday as they are too obvious and therefore easy to guess.
Use a combination of numbers, letters, and symbols like “#”, “@”, “&”, and others. It’s almost impossible for hackers to break into your wifi network if your password combination is unique and super strong
Avoid sharing your wifi password to your personal wifi network. You never know what someone is up to. It’s always a good idea to create a separate guest network for your friends as well as visiting family members.

To keep your wifi password safe, prohibit your immediate family members from sharing the password to neighbors and friends.

In addition to choosing a good password for your network, you must select the ideal wifi security protocol.

There are typically three main wifi encryptions which include WEP, WPA, and WPA2. There is also WPA3 which is yet to be made compulsory on all wireless devices.

WEP is the oldest and least security wifi security protocol. If your router only offers the WEP encryption, you should probably consider upgrading it or having it replaced since this encryption puts you at a high risk of cyberattacks.

For maximum security, it’s highly recommended that you use WPA2 since it uses the latest technology to encrypt your wireless connections. WPA2 is much harder to crack compared to WEP.

Once the new username and password are set, click Save or Apply to save the changes you’ve made.

If you’re still connected to your router’s web interface, the device will automatically disconnect as the old wifi network is shut down and the new one is activated.

Some router models may restart to apply the new changes, so you may end up losing the connection until its ready to use again.

The final step is reconnecting all your wireless devices to the new network and enter the new password in each one of them.

This is important since the device won’t be able to connect to the new network without you manually connecting them with the new name and password.