In response to a public service announcement published by the FBI on May 25, 2018, we are providing instructions for how to update the firmware on routers that we rent. This is only a recommendation. You are not required to update the firmware.
If you rent a router from us and would like for us to update the firmware for you please feel free to bring the router into our office and we can do it for you. It normally takes about 15-20 minutes to update the firmware.
If you own your router we would ask that you contact your router manufacturer tech support. If you bought one of the below routers from us then you should be able to follow these instructions.
From the FBI website: "The FBI recommends any owner of small office and home office routers reboot the devices to temporarily disrupt the malware and aid the potential identification of infected devices. Owners are advised to consider disabling remote management settings on devices and secure with strong passwords and encryption when enabled. Network devices should be upgraded to the latest available versions of firmware."
** Please note that remote management is disabled by default on the routers that we rent, so there is no need to manually disable it. **
For NETGEAR WNR3500Lv2 routers:
**PLEASE NOTE** If you use the automatic firmware update function of the Netgear router it will not update to the latest firmware version V1.2.0.50_50.0.90.
2. DOWNLOAD the latest firmware file
First, download the latest firmware version here:
http://www.downloads.netgear.com/files/GDC/WNR3500Lv2/WNR3500Lv2-V1.2.0.50_50.0.90.zip
3. EXTRACT the downloaded firmware file
Next, extract the firmware file on your computer by right-clicking the file and selecting "Extract All" from the menu. Be sure to note where the file will be extracted to because you will need to find the extracted file in the next steps.
4. UPDATE the firmware on your router
- Go to http://routerlogin.net and log in using username admin and password password.
- Click on the Advanced tab in the upper left corner.
- On the left-hand menu select Administration, then select Router Update.
- Click on Browse and then select the WNR3500Lv2-V1.2.0.50_50.0.90.chk file in the folder where you extracted to earlier. (See the EXTRACT step above.)
- Click the Upload button and wait a couple of minutes for the firmware to update. Do not turn your router off during the update process.
- To confirm that the firmware update completed you should see "Firmware Version V1.2.0.50_50.0.90" in the upper right corner.
For BUFFALO WHR-300HP2 routers:
- Reboot (turn off and back on again) your router and wait 2 minutes.
- Login to the router at http://192.168.11.1 using username admin and password password.
- On the left-hand menu, select Update Airstation Firmware.
- Select Automatic Update and click Apply.
- You will notice that the current firmware version is displayed at the bottom of the page.
- Select version 2.51 and then click Update. Do not turn your router off during the update process.
- To confirm that the firmware has been updated follow steps 1 through 4 again.