u2jimbo

Q: If a neighbors network shows up on my WiFi list under About This Mac, should I be concerned about security?

I am trying to solve a networking issue.  In the process, I was reviewing the WiFi networks listed in the System Report under About My Mac.  I found all my expected networks but also found a network I will name My Next Door Neighbor.  Although I have seen this network on my computer when connecting to one of my networks (and believed it to simply be a neighbor whose own network was close and strong), I was surprised to find it as a listing on the WiFi page of the System Report.

 

I don't know if I am over-reacting or should be concerned this neighbor could somehow be riding on my internet account and/or have access to sensitive information on my computer.  All my networks are secured with WPA2 Personal.  So is the neighbor.

 

Thanks for any insight that you can provide.

 

Jim

Mac Pro (Late 2013), OS X El Capitan (10.11.1)

Posted on Dec 17, 2015 10:23 PM

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Q: If a neighbors network shows up on my WiFi list under About This Mac, should I be concerned about security?

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  • by u2jimbo,

    u2jimbo u2jimbo Dec 22, 2015 11:20 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Dec 22, 2015 11:20 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

    Grant:

     

    After the holidays I will try connecting my Time Machine into my network and see if I can get it to work.

     

    Thanks again for your insights.  Have a Happy Holiday Season!

     

    I tried to click on the "This helped me" star with  no success.  Sorry I couldn't get you to 55,731.!

  • by Grant Bennet-Alder,

    Grant Bennet-Alder Grant Bennet-Alder Dec 22, 2015 12:11 PM in response to u2jimbo
    Level 9 (60,936 points)
    Desktops
    Dec 22, 2015 12:11 PM in response to u2jimbo

    The TP-Link devices focus on an installation method that replaces you current Router, and steals its M.A.C. Address to sue as its own.

     

    The Mac Time Capsule or Airport Extreme Router does not require this step, and has its own M.A.C. address. In my experience, The Apple Router just "looks around" at what is already present on your Network and just configures itself automatically. If it is not the first Router, it sets itself into Bridge mode to act only as an Access Point.

  • by Network 23,

    Network 23 Network 23 Dec 22, 2015 1:19 PM in response to u2jimbo
    Level 6 (12,043 points)
    Mac OS X
    Dec 22, 2015 1:19 PM in response to u2jimbo

    I've been away from this thread for a while but I have some experience with this...

    u2jimbo wrote:

     

    After the holidays I will try connecting my Time Machine into my network and see if I can get it to work.

    It should work as long as everything is set up properly. Like you, I back up Macs to a Time Capsule across a powerline segment of my network because range extenders could not do the job, and it's fine. I am using a different brand of powerline adapter, but the principle is the same. As Grant said, as long as it's set up right the Time Capsule will follow the router and be a good network citizen.

    u2jimbo wrote:

     

    connected to each other via ethernet cable or my house electrical wiring (is electrical cable as good as an ethernet cable?).

    The cables themselves are not the issue. Powerline can be fast, but like wireless, it is never as fast as it says on the box because powerline can be affected by electrical interference from appliances and some types of lights around the house. I have learned through trial and error which electrical devices in my home will slow down the powerline network. In most cases I don't worry about it, but if I am trying to transfer large files across the house over powerline I turn off the device (in my case an old lamp) that slows down the powerline part of the network.

     

    An Ethernet cable is consistently faster not because of the cable, but because it doesn't have to compete with anything. It's a direct link that is not subject to the same interference factors as wifi and powerline.

  • by Grant Bennet-Alder,

    Grant Bennet-Alder Grant Bennet-Alder Dec 22, 2015 4:45 PM in response to Network 23
    Level 9 (60,936 points)
    Desktops
    Dec 22, 2015 4:45 PM in response to Network 23

    In the US, we get two phases of power from the power company, 180 degrees out of phase from each other. Appliance that run on 120 Volts nominal use either phase and neutral. Big stuff like electric stove, clothes dryer, and electric water heater use both phases, and the difference between them is 240 Volts nominal. If you look at your circuit Breaker panel, in general, every other fuse on each side is on the opposite phase.

     

    I used some other power line devices (baby monitor/intercoms) in my house, and found I had to pay close attention to which of the phases of the two-phase power they were using. If I had the receiver on a circuit on phase A, and plugged in a sender on a circuit on phase B, the reception was awful.

     

    Do you find these devices need attention to which AC power phase, do they "just work", or do they sometimes work good, other times, not so good?

  • by u2jimbo,

    u2jimbo u2jimbo Dec 22, 2015 7:39 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Dec 22, 2015 7:39 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

    Grant:

     

    After the holidays I will try connecting my Time Machine into my network and see if I can get it to work.

     

    Thanks again for your insights.  Have a Happy Holiday Season!

     

    I tried to click on the "This helped me" star with  no success.  Sorry I couldn't get you to 55,731.!

  • by u2jimbo,

    u2jimbo u2jimbo Dec 22, 2015 8:04 PM in response to u2jimbo
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Dec 22, 2015 8:04 PM in response to u2jimbo

    Grant:

    I don't believe I have had enough experience with them to notice whether they suffer from any "out-of-phase" obstacles.  I do play iRacing on my gaming system which demands low latency and consistent connect quality in order to be racing "real time" on-line.  So far (early November) I have not had a problem or been shown alert messages suggesting my connect speed was dropping below their thresholds.

     

    Network 23:

    This house came with copious ethernet cables run to every room in the house.  Unfortunately, they all terminate in a communications closet.  That is where the Arris Gateway is located.  The Gateway is linked to my router via an ethernet cable to my office.  I then connect via powerline adapters to the other two areas of the house.

     

    I guess I could relocate my router into the communications closet; connect it to the Gateway with a short cable; then connect all the various rooms ethernet cables into the router using a switch.  It was set up that way when we moved in but there was no wireless reception in distant locations.  All the appliances (TV, Blu-Ray, X-Box) were hard wired.  Visitors all wanted to connect wirelessly and couldn't.  That was the beginning of this journey.

     

    I would guess from the small amount of understanding I have been gaining is that I would need some kind of wireless transmitters hard wired into those distant rooms (kinda like the TP-Links) to provide that additional service.  I am not sure I want to relocate the router to the closet (though I have no practical reason not to - I don't really interact with it where it is - just watch the lights blink...  But I have no idea what kind of device I would need to broadcast the wireless signal.  Would an Airport Base Station work?

  • by Grant Bennet-Alder,

    Grant Bennet-Alder Grant Bennet-Alder Dec 23, 2015 8:22 AM in response to u2jimbo
    Level 9 (60,936 points)
    Desktops
    Dec 23, 2015 8:22 AM in response to u2jimbo

    I would need some kind of wireless transmitters hard wired into those distant rooms (kinda like the TP-Links)

     

    That would work great, using Ethernet wiring or power-line wiring or a mix of the two, and one or more TP-Link remote boxes on power-line or other WiFi routers on Ethernet.

     

    what model Arris gateway do you have?

     

    When you look at a whole house at first glance, Ethernet looks like it will not work because it is point-to-point and most devices look like they only have one Ethernet port. But you can "split" the Ethernet signals as many ways as you want with one or several Ethernet switches (which it turns out is a little smarter than just a splitter). You may already have one of those in your "wiring closet". if you need to buy one, get one that is Gigabit Ethernet capable. Several different models are sold through the Apple online store as well as other outlets.

     

    Page 8 in the TP-link manual show how to wire up a Network with a Router (such as your Arris gateway) and some TP-Link stuff. The most straightforward way would be to put all that in your wiring closet, but there is no strict requirement to do it that way.

     

     

     

    http://www.tp-link.com/res/down/doc/TL-WPA4220_V1_UG.pdf

     

    .

  • by u2jimbo,

    u2jimbo u2jimbo Dec 23, 2015 11:39 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Dec 23, 2015 11:39 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

    what model Arris gateway do you have?

     

    Its an Arris TM822G.

     

    I will start looking through my Apple stored equipment and see if I have any Airport Base Stations I could use.  I will also check the ratings on the switches I have.

     

    Here I go again!

     

    Merry Christmas!

  • by Grant Bennet-Alder,

    Grant Bennet-Alder Grant Bennet-Alder Dec 23, 2015 12:13 PM in response to u2jimbo
    Level 9 (60,936 points)
    Desktops
    Dec 23, 2015 12:13 PM in response to u2jimbo

    Your User manual appears to be here:

     

    http://www.surfboard.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/ARRIS_SURFboard_TM822_Quick_ Start_Guide.pdf

     

    based on a quick look through that manual, this device does NOT appear to be a Router/Base station on its own. So the "classic" way of setting up your Network connections would be:

     

    Arris 822G Gateway <-Ethernet cable-> Primary Router/Base Station <Ethernet cable> Ethernet Switch <=every Ethernet port in your wiring closet

     

    You could connect in the TP-Link Router at any point, either using it as the primary Router (which could then optionally be connected to Ethernet wiring in the wiring closet) or as a secondary Router (used as an Access point, not a full Router).

  • by u2jimbo,

    u2jimbo u2jimbo Dec 24, 2015 11:32 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Dec 24, 2015 11:32 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

    OK.  Thanks for that info.  I need to be very clear to myself about the connection sequence. So, here is what I am hearing you describe:

     

    Arris 822G Gateway <ethernet cable> Netgear Nighthawk R8000 Router  <ethernet cable> Ethernet Switch <all ethernet cables to various rooms in the house> + <ethernet cable> TP-Link Base Station <ethernet cable to living room> Powerline Adapter <ethernet cable> TV and Blu-Ray and/or <wireless broadcast> iPhone or MacBook; likewise TP-Link Base Station <ethernet cable to game room> Powerline Adapter <ethernet cable> X-Box and Gaming Computer and/or <wireless broadcast> iPhone or MacBook; likewise TP-Link Base Station <ethernet cable to office> New Powerline Adapter <ethernet cable> Ethernet Switch <ethernet cables> Apple Computer #1, Apple Computer #2,  Apple Time Machine, Printer #1, and Printer #2 and/or <wireless broadcast> iPhone.

     

    For all of the other rooms in the house that are now connected to the router via the Ethernet Switch, I can plug a device into the ethernet wall outlet or install another TP-Link Powerline Adapter and hardwire + broadcast within that room.

     

    If I have understood all of your guidance, I would now have solid, whole house network coverage.  And, it is beginning to make sense!

     

    Thanks.

  • by Grant Bennet-Alder,

    Grant Bennet-Alder Grant Bennet-Alder Dec 24, 2015 11:52 AM in response to u2jimbo
    Level 9 (60,936 points)
    Desktops
    Dec 24, 2015 11:52 AM in response to u2jimbo

    And, it is beginning to make sense!

     

    Excellent! That is by far the best part.

     

    Once you start to really "get it", you can see that you have lots of options, and a little more fiddling with it will get you BIG results.

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