Hidden Network

[BirdDog]

I can assure you, they are not using that hidden network to hack into your private network, if that is what you are worried about. There would be HUGE legal consequences if they did that.

[GabeU]

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@lake_woman wrote: 

We were not notified that there would be an update that would give us an Hidden Network. It just showed up out of nowhere, no explaination at all.

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No one was notified because it's a modem update, not a service update.  Hughesnet isn't required to let you, nor anyone else, know.  Nor are they required to tell you what it's for, nor anything else about it.  About the only thing they may answer is..."Is it a security concern?"  I'm sure the answer will be, "no."      

As has already been stated..."It has been included to provide support for a future service from HughesNet. This will not affect your normal service or usage."

[C0RR0SIVE]

@lake_woman

While you may dislike that there is a "hidden" network (it's only named that because the devices you are using don't know the name, it's not actually hidden), it doesn't harm you having it there in the slightest.  If you want to be notified of future changes, I suggest becoming a major stakeholder in Echostar, then you will be notified of future changes.

• The network in question is secure
• The network in question has no SSID visible, only devices that know the SSID could begin a connection.
• The network in question is most likely using a passphrase that no one could guess, nor crack, and that's if they could first figure out the SSID
• The network in question doesn't change your service in the slightest, it's not part of your "account".

The simple truth is, it's there, for future uses, if Hughesnet really wanted to spy on you, they wouldn't do it in any manor that you could detect, nor never know.  They haven't made a change to your account, they have made a change to the modem, a change that removes absolutely nothing from your service.

[maratsade]

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@MarkJFine wrote:

I was hoping it automatically delivered Starbucks on demand.

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You know, it may end up being a combination Siri and matter replicator, so we can all ask it to materialize what we want (coffee, popcorn, chicken, beer....).  

[maratsade]

"I also checked my laptop today.  Sure enough, it's there now that I have the new modem software.  Whether every radio box is checked or unchecked, including the two under the main Advanced Wireless page, it's there."

It's hilarious that something labeled "hidden" can be seen by everyone.  Although it doesn't show on my Mac, only on my Windows machines. 

[maratsade]

double post-- sorry

[maratsade]

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@BirdDog wrote:

I can assure you, they are not using that hidden network to hack into your private network, if that is what you are worried about. There would be HUGE legal consequences if they did that.

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Or ARE they?  Muahahahahahahah!

[GabeU]

Okay, an update (ugh, I should be in bed!).  

We know that unchecking the boxes for the four radios on the Home page (2.4 and guest, and 5 and guest) turns off the radios, or at least the SSID broadcast and SSID enable, but leaves the hidden network still broadcasting.  I found out that if one unchecks the two boxes under the Wireless setting in the Advanced Setup, it turns off the hidden network, too.  

Because of that, I think @MarkJFine may be right, and that unchecking the individual radio boxes on the Home page (or the duplicates in the Advanced Setup section) only stops the SSID Broadcast and SSID Enable, and that unchecking each box for each radio under the Wireless setting in the Advanced Setup actually turns off the radios all together.  After all, if the former actually turned the radios off, how could they broadcast the hidden network?  

What brought me to this is not only the hidden network disappearing when the box for each radio was unchecked on the Wireless page, but also that when those boxes are unchecked the WiFi light on the modem goes out, whereas unchecking only the boxes for the four radios (or the duplicates in Advanced Setup section) does NOT turn that light off.  

With all of this said, I don't believe turning ONLY the hidden network off is possible (maybe...see below picture), but, as explained in many posts, having it on isn't a problem.  

Unchecking these two boxes, I believe, as stated above, actually turns the radios themselves off....

With all of this said, I don't know if the hidden network transmits on both the 2.4Ghz radio and the 5Ghz radio, or just the 2.4Ghz radio, as my laptop can only utilize the 2.4Ghz band.  

If it does only broadcast from the 2.4Ghz radio, and one can utilize the 5Ghz band, then, in theory, one could uncheck the 2.4Ghz box and get rid of the hidden network, and still use the WiFi with the 5Ghz radio.  Someone would have to test this.  I can't.  Again, though, the hidden network is nothing to worry about, but if one still does, this might work.    

Thanks for reading!  

[MarkJFine]

@maratsade

Little bit Mac trick I picked up once:
1. Hold down Ctrl+Opt and click on the wifi symbol in the menu bar. An expanded menu will show with gobs of useful information.

2. Click on Open Wireless Diagnostics in that menu. A window will appear, but what you want is the menu for it in the menu bar.

3. Choose Window->Scan from the menu bar. A wifi scanner window will appear showing all of the wifi signals in the area.

4. Clicking the Scan button to refresh the display, because the signal with the blank SSID won't show immediately (which is why I don't think it's actually 'on' all the time, either). You will be able to tell which one it is because it has all the same markers as the main wifi network it belongs to (mac address, security, protocol, etc.)

Clearly there's lots more to this. It used to be available from the Utilities folder and I have no idea why they took it out.

[maratsade]

@MarkJFine

Thanks for the tips! I've used Macs for years and had never used the control or the option keys. I had no idea what they did.

I followed your instructions but the hidden network must be very well hidden by my Mac because it didn't appear on the list. I see the same networks as when I just click the wifi icon.