What does it mean if you’ve noticed your WiFi’s speed sometimes being slower than usual when you’re trying to download something or watch a movie on Netflix? Could someone really be using your WiFi to do any sort of illegal actions or it’s just your neighbor using it because he can’t afford it?
Here are 3 proven methods how to check if someone is using my WiFi :
Method 1 – Check the blinking lights on your router
There’s a quick and effective way to make sure if someone else is using your WiFi, even though it might be a little bit annoying. Every router has a light indicator for a WiFi activity, which means it’s gonna blink if a device is connected to it and is using it. So what you do is disconnect or unplug any devices that are using your WiFi (such as smartphones, gaming consoles, TV, etc.), then afterward check if the light is still blinking or not, but be sure that you don’t have any devices connected to it, so you don’t get mistaken.
Method 2 – Check your router’s connected devices list
You need to log into your router’s administrative console. In order to do that, you have to enter your router’s IP address which is displayed behind on the router. If you changed your router’s default settings, then you’ll have to find out what’s your router’s IP address on your computer.
For Windows users: Go to the command prompt (by pressing Windows Key + R and type cmd), then proceed to type ‘’ipconfig’’ in the window that opens up after you hit Enter.
You’re looking for a number by the name of ‘’IPv4’’ or ‘’Default Gateway’’.
For Mac users: Open System Preference, then choose Network. Hover over your active connection and look for several numbers under ‘’Status’’, your number is named ‘’IPv4’’.
Once you got your IP address, go ahead and enter it in the browser window. You’ll be asked to log in to your router. Assuming you haven’t changed the settings, your login combination will consist of ‘’admin’’ and ‘’password’’ or just blank fields. For security matters, once you log in, make sure you change your password to protect yourself before a hacker does it for you.
If you happen to find an unauthorized device that is not yours, go ahead and change your WiFi password in the settings on your router’s administrative console. Once you change it, it will kick off any connected devices, so they will need to know the new password in order to connect to your WiFi again.
Method 3 – Download an app
There are lots of different apps that search for unknown devices that are connected to your WiFi. The best time to run a check is in odd times when you have no friends over and all the devices are mostly disconnected. We recommend an app called WiFi Thief Detector. It is easy to download and setup. It is specifically made for purposes like this. It basically shows you how many unique devices are connected to your router so you can figure out easier if there are any unwanted devices connected without your knowledge. Once you find an unknown device, just change your password and every device that was connected will need to enter the new password in order to connect to your WiFi again.
Additional protection
In most cases, you will get rid of anyone connecting to your WiFi by just simply changing the password. But what if someone keeps hacking your WiFi password and connecting his device to it? There’s an option for that too. Firstly, you’ll need to log into your router’s administrative console(we have mentioned how to do it earlier in the post). Once you logged in, find a setting called ‘’MAC Filtering’’. This basically lets you mark a device as blocked, and that device will no longer be able to connect to your WiFi, regardless of providing the password.
Make your WiFi security stronger.
Check what kind of security your network is using. You can check that by going to your wireless connection properties. There are old security protocols named WEP and WPA that shouldn’t be used anymore because of how insecure they are. If you have those security protocols, definitely make sure to upgrade them. If you’re using a modern and secure security protocol such as WPA2, then make sure it’s the AES version and not the less reliable TKIP. The strongest security protocol is called WPA3, so if you have a chance, upgrade to it.
Protect your WiFi using a strong password if you don’t want anyone using your WiFi for potential legal trouble.
If you have however tried everything that’s mentioned and you can’t find any unauthorized devices connected to your wifi, but your speed is still slow, then you should consider upgrading your connection speed.
