As technology becomes increasingly integrated into our lives, protecting yourself online in today’s world is more critical than ever. Everything you do—from banking to school to work—likely features some kind of online component. Dangerous websites, malware, scams, and other privacy concerns are out there. Buffering your network with a robust security solution is an ideal method for keeping your privacy guarded and your network safe. Generally sold as a box that connects to your network, a security solution implements several useful features that will safeguard your home’s network against multiple threats while providing the solace of knowing your devices are fully protected. Here are five ways to leverage those features to secure your home network better:

Manage Devices Remotely

Maintaining complete agency and control over your smart devices is essential nowadays. You or your family likely have more than one device connected to your network. There are many advantages to managing your devices remotely: parental controls, troubleshooting, scheduling scans, locking devices, and more. A comprehensive security system enables you to select and approve new devices before they connect to your network, providing instant insight into who’s making a connection. Furthermore, you have the power to instantly stop or disconnect an unknown/unwanted device at any time. Most remote device management also offers some form of family protection from setting time limits or rules by family members and creating family groups within your network. Remote device management features protect your family’s privacy and safeguard your network from unexpected intrusions.

Reinforce Network Protection

Home network intrusions and security problems are much more pervasive than you may think. Most people tend to underestimate precisely how vulnerable their home networks are to various attacks, hacking, and intrusions. Fortunately, implementing a good home network security solution can vastly decrease the risk. Enhanced network protection prevents hackers from accessing your systems by scanning network traffic in real-time. It then identifies and prevents them from infecting your computer, altering program settings or otherwise hacking your devices. In this manner, you can thoroughly reinforce your network protection without compromising data speeds or breaking the bank.

Use Content Filtering

Another excellent technique for protecting yourself online is to use content filtering as part of your more extensive online security setup. But, what is content filtering, anyway? In content filtering, a program assesses and blocks any inappropriate content or dangerous websites defined by the user. In addition to using it at home, it’s valuable in the workplace for enforcing company policies or at home to protect children from objectionable content. As part of a software solution, content filtering matches any user-specified rules to guard children and other family members against accessing inappropriate content. Some security suites also enable app detection, which alerts parents to children accessing problematic apps as well. Content filtering is applicable across email, websites, and programs/apps. In addition to powerful content filtering, the best security software will also allow users to set time limits and take advantage of increased cellular network protection.

Guard Against Dangerous Websites And Files

Using a state-of-the-art advanced protection technique, a good home security system can protect every device on your network, including game consoles, computers, and smart devices. Sometimes a website or a download can be infected with malware and cause significant problems. The best way to mitigate problems with potentially dangerous files is to run them through a screening program first. It’s also prudent to avoid running macros within files, clicking on unknown links, or downloading file formats with which you are unfamiliar. All of these valuable tools exist within the framework of a good security system, so be sure to use them to your advantage. A bit of common sense combined with robust network security will successfully guard against malware, dangerous files, and an array of online threats.

Monitor Device Vulnerabilities And Passwords

It’s a fact of modern life: devices can be vulnerable to exploits. There’s no getting around it. There are, however, plenty of security methods for reducing the risk. Regular device scans will reduce potential problems by pinpointing vulnerabilities, insecure software, compromised settings and weak router passwords. A weak password can likely be the worst of these and possibly the easiest to exploit. A weak password can be characterized by a short length and a quick association with something about the user. Sometimes people grow frustrated with longer passwords and decided to go the easy route of something simple. Hackers are fully aware of this and tend to target potential password exploits. Once they get in, they can do some serious damage and exploit any other vulnerabilities in your network. Smart home network security cuts these attacks off at the source, creating a safe environment for you and your family online.