Find out who is using your WiFi

Do you suspect your neighbour using your WiFi network without your consent? Rather than spending hours staring at your router’s administration console to find out who is using your WiFi, you can use Wireless Network Watcher – a free utility that scans for devices currently connected to your network.

Once launched, the utility scans the network you are connected to and display the devices currently using your WiFi connection along with their corresponding IP address, Mac Address, Computer names and Network Adapter name.

That’s cool! But what if your neighbour is not connected at the moment you are running the scan? You will obviously not see his or her computer in the list. If you want to get notified as soon as someone attempts to connect to your WiFi network, you will need to tweak the app a bit.
Go to Options and select the following: Put Icon On Tray,Start As Hidden, Tray Balloon on New Device, Background Scan and Beep on New Device.

 We will now set the interval between two scans. To do this click on Options > Advanced options or press F9. In the new window, enter the desired time in seconds between scans, for example 900 (equivalent to 15 minutes).

 Now each time someone connects to your WiFi Network, a balloon notification will appear in your tray icon.

Someone is using my WiFi! Now what?

Ok calm down – don’t tear your hair out if you found someone is using your WiFi. I’ll show you how you can keep freeloaders away from using your WiFi connection.
If someone has been able to connect to your WiFi network, it is most likely because there was no password protection. The simplest solution is set up a strong password using a secure algorithm such as WPA/ WPA2 – avoid using WEP as it is easily crackable.
Don’t worry, you don’t need to know about how encryption algorithm such as WEP/WPA works. You just need to select it on your router’s administration console and set a password.
So how do you do all that? Well, it depends on the type of router you have. Most routers admin console are accessible via the address http://192.168.1.1. You will be prompted for a username and a password. Most router manufacturers set the default credentials to root or admin for both the username and the password. Once you have logged in, look for your Wireless settings and make the appropriate changes.

 Congratulation! You can now start breathing again. This should be enough to keep unauthorized users from using your WiFi. If you are still being paranoid, you can harden your WiFi security by white-listing your computer’s mac address in your router’s console. However, this makes it a bit tougher for welcome guests such as your family or friends, to get online at your house.