Did you know that there are currently 3.74 billion Internet users around the world and around 27% of these users use Wi-Fi? Wi-Fi is so common nowadays that you probably do not think about it anymore unless there are problems and you can’t get on the Internet.
And while Wi-Fi is great, it is not a perfect system; you are bound to run into problems like slow speed, dropped the connection, inability to connect, or not being able to see the network. Sometimes, too, security becomes an issue.
What do you do when these problems arise? You do not just complain and tear at your hair; you fix them. Fingbox will help you do just that.
Fingbox is a device that can help you secure and troubleshoot issues relating to your home’s Wi-Fi network.
Fingbox
Fingbox started out as an Indiegogo project in 2016. By the time the campaign ended, the project got more than $1.5 million and met 1,744% of its fund target.
Fingbox watches over your Wi-Fi network. It can help you detect unauthorized users, block devices from connecting to your network, and even monitor the quality of your Wi-Fi signals and Internet connection.
You just connect the Fingbox to your router or any part of your network, download the mobile app, set up your account, and it will be able to monitor your network. It is that easy. What’s more, setting it up is a breeze.
To create users, for example, Fingbox will be able to access your phonebook and then get photos of people from your phone. You do not have to enter names or upload photos yourself because Fingbox does it for you.
Features
Tracks users logged into your Wi-Fi network. Fingbox allows you to monitor who is connected to your network and to limit Internet access. You can also pull up each device’s activity and history. It can detect Wi-Fi attacks, too, and block unauthorized users.
Improves the performance of your network. Fingbox does not only show you who is accessing your Wi-Fi network, it can also help you get reliable speed tests to see how fast your Internet is. You can use it to find the best spots around the house where there is a good Wi-Fi signal.
Lastly, it can help you detect those devices that are hogging the bandwidth.
DigitalFence. Fingbox not only gives you a list of devices that are connected to your network, it will also get you a list of devices near it but are not connected to your network.
Alerts. Detection is one thing, but, for sure, you are not going to want to spend your day looking at who’s connected to your Wi-fi in the hopes of catching an intruder. The good news is that Fingbox will alert you if there are new devices that connect to your network.
It will also alert you if there are changes to the status of any of your existing devices, or of devices that you are monitoring.
Check your Internet speed. With Fingbox, you will be able to know your download speed, upload speed, latency, and history of your upload and download speeds.
Internet security and detecting Wi-Fi attacks
One of the most significant features of the Fingbox is its ability to detect attacks on your Wi-Fi network. It can help you detect unauthorized, rogue, and evil twin access points, as well as Wi-Fi jamming and de-authentication attacks.
This helps you protect your Wi-Fi network from Man-in-the-Middle attacks and other malicious attacks.
More than that, Fingbox also allows you to see if there are open ports and other vulnerabilities on your network that a hacker can use to get in. The good news is that this check is done weekly without you having to do anything and you will be alerted if there are any new vulnerabilities discovered.
The Fing Network Tools App
The Fingbox is an offshoot of the Fing Network Tools App, which currently has around 20 million users. The Fing app gives you a free way to scan your network. The app will allow you to detect intruders, assess risks on your network security, and even troubleshoot problems.
From discovering all the devices that are currently connected to your network; to getting full device details such as MAC addresses, device name, IP address, and other information; to analysing of UPNP, NetBIOS, and other properties; to checking your Internet connectivity; to scanning your ports; to sending out traceroutes and pings, there are just simply a lot that you could do with the app.
However, getting the Fingbox will allow you to do more.
There are simply things that you can monitor and troubleshoot with your network only when you have a physical device. For instance, the Fing app is only able to show you the users connected to your network and will not be able to continuously monitor your network around the clock.
Other features that you can unlock with the Fingbox include intruder detection, device blocking, bandwidth analysis, and Wi-Fi speed, among many others. Think of the Fingbox as your Fing app that is always on, with more security features.
Everything that you want to do with your Fingbox can be done via the Fing app. Blocking any device from connecting to the Internet is now done with a single tap. You can conduct bandwidth analysis to see which devices are using a lot of bandwidth. And looking for the best spots around the house is also a lot easier.
Go to a particular place around your home and use the app to see how much speed it is getting. You can also find out if that area is able to handle standard definition, high-definition, or 4k video streaming. Move around the house and see how this information changes.
What you would like about Fingbox
If you have used the Fing app before, then you would certainly love the additional functionality that the Fingbox offers.
There are two ways to block devices with the Fingbox. One would be to completely block devices from connecting to your network or to the Internet, or both. This is a great way to block unauthorized connections to your network.
Another way is the Internet Pause feature, which allows you to block a device from connecting to the Internet temporarily.
You could use this to ensure that your child does his or her homework first before going on Facebook.
You could, for example, set it up so that your kid could still print out something from his or her computer, but won’t be able to go online. You can also pause the Internet when it is time to go to sleep, to make sure that they don’t sneak a peek on their smartphones.
With Fingbox, you can pause Internet connection to all your devices with only one tap.
An understated benefit of Fingbox is that you can use it to see who’s home and who’s running late. If your daughter is out rather late, you no longer have to wait for her in the darkened living room to make sure she got home safe.
Fingbox will be able to alert you when her smartphone connects to the network the moment she comes home. It also works with the people who might work for you, like the babysitter, cleaning lady, or gardener.
You can know when they arrive at your house without giving them your Wi-Fi password, thanks to the DigitalFence alerts.
What could be better
The Fingbox device comes with a circle of LED lights, which will give you an idea of what the Fingbox is doing without you looking at your smartphone. For instance, when powering up, the light is white.
A steady blue light means things are normal, but when a new device is detected, you will see alternating half circles of blue light. There are also times when the LED lights would spin, pulse, or remain steady, apart from flashing pink, blue, green, white, yellow, and orange.
Instead of having you rely on lights and requiring you to memorize what each light color and movement means, the manufacturers could have made things easier by adding a display that will tell you if there are events or alerts that need your attention.
Fingbox also does not offer any automations. There is no IFTTT support and no API available.
That means you are left to decide and take action if it does detect something.
What’s inside the box
Every Fingbox package includes:
- Fingbox
- Network cable
- Power cable
- Power adapters for the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia
- instruction manual
Final recommendations about the Fingbox
There is no doubt that the Fingbox was made with a lot of thought put into it.
Everything about the device makes network security and Wi-Fi troubleshooting a whole lot easier and simpler.
It helps that the device builds on the popular mobile app that it offers too. App-based network scanners are great tools to get information about your Wi-Fi network, but they are naturally limited.
The Fingbox aims to circumvent these limitations. With the Fingbox and the Fing app working together, you can have round-the-clock monitoring that would have been impossible using other network scanners.
Another thing with the Fingbox is that it works differently from smart firewalls such as Cujo and Bitdefender Box. Instead of rerouting your network traffic and slowing things down like what firewalls do, Fingbox does not reroute all of the network traffic to do its job.
Plus it uses a non-invasive low-level form of monitoring that does not slow things down.
Smart firewalls are also used to guard against malware and other online threats, while Fingbox protects you from physical threats such as Wi-Fi eavesdropping, hacking and unauthorized connections.
Furthermore, Fingbox is not meant to compete with Eero, Starry, Luma, and other routers now available. It is designed to work alongside your current router to protect you from threats.
However, it does offer features that only high-end routers would have, so it does give you the option to buy a more affordable router and then use Fingbox to unlock features that you would need to spend an extra hundred of dollars to have.
Fingbox gives you a high level of information about your network as well as make it easy for you to troubleshoot slowdowns, connectivity problems and other network related troubles. It also helps protect yours from outside attacks. All that for a good price (check this listing for the latest live prices)!
Pity they don’t roffer support and you’re at the mercy of other users for help.