This router setting was the best thing I ever did for my family’s internet

As a dad, I'm always trying to think about the best ways to keep my family safe. Sure, this comes with some paternal instincts, such as when you foresee your kid potentially running into harm's way. But other ones are obvious, like knowing when something feels wrong, and everyone should keep an eye out for safety.

This isn't something highly unusual, as most people have a decent enough sense as to when something might seem fishy. This can go a long way when you're thinking about your safety when it comes to cybersecurity. Keeping your home internet protected against malicious attackers is something that some people do quite well and others don't pay attention to at all. For years, I just used my internet service provider's (ISP) router and thought nothing of it. But I decided to make a change recently with my family in mind and that was to switch to a security-focused DNS.

What you need to know about DNS

You've probably used a DNS server and not realized it

If you were like me, the Domain Name System (DNS) is something you probably didn't even think about when you were first setting up your Wi-Fi. DNS servers take domain names and turn them into IP addresses that your computer can translate. Rather than you having to memorize a string of random numbers to know what websites to visit, the DNS takes care of it for you and communicates whatever you're searching for to your router.

You want your router and your network to work together to find the websites that you want to visit faster. If you're using your ISP's router, there are DNS settings enabled that you don't have to go into. It is set up to run as effectively as possible, letting you visit sites, stream, game, and do whatever else you want on the internet.

As with anything in tech, there are ways to upgrade or enhance it. You don't have to stick with the DNS that is used by your ISP. You can choose your own DNS and avoid using your ISP's default ones. This often guarantees that you get faster speeds, better privacy, and all around better.

Most people will just leave what they have rather than mess around with the settings. But the weakness in most ISP DNS settings is poor security.

Why you should consider changing your DNS server

It just is not as safe as it could be

Again, if you wanted to just keep using the DNS server that your ISP uses, you might be fine. But I'm not trying to have my information stolen or that of my young children.

Changing your DNS server is not difficult, as there are many free public DNS providers. You can opt for services like Quad9, Cloudflare, OpenDNS, and Google Public DNS, all of which offer stronger security features than what you probably had through your ISP. You will manually override the ISP DNS by entering a new one.

If you're using Windows, you can change your DNS by going into Settings > Network & internet > Wi-Fi or Ethernet > Hardware properties and then choosing to edit the DNS server assignment and toggling on IPv4 and entering your preferred DNS. On macOS, you can do it by clicking System Preferences > Network > clicking your current connection > DNS and then adding what you want with the + button.

When I was deciding between which DNS option to choose, I wanted something that was fast and kept my data protected. Quad9 is specifically designed for cybersecurity purposes and blocking threats. While options like Cloudflare offer a lot in terms of privacy, I've been pleased with Quad9's collection of attributes so far.

Switching to a more secure DNS server has given me peace of mind

It's a family-focused and secure DNS server

Quad9 has proven to be both faster and safer than my ISP DNS. Quad9 gives you three options for configuration, so you can choose how you want to use it. You can opt for 9.9.9.9, which provides you with full coverage against malicious attacks and domains. There is also 9.9.9.10, which gives you all the DNS resolution you want without built-in security blocking, as well as 9.9.9.11, which is another highly secure option that is ECS-enabled and blocks malware.

The recursive DNS server immediately blocks the lookups of malicious sites, so your computer will never even get to them. Because it is based in Switzerland, it features more robust security protocols than many other options on the market. It is also spread over 90 countries, meaning there are more servers available to boost the speeds of the requests.

Quad9 touts that it blocks 670M malicious domains on average a day. Quad9 also doesn't log any of your requests, so your data is secure when you're using it. It also offers encryption, keeping anything you're doing safer.

It was incredibly easy to set up for my home and I have seen a boost in performance and speed. This has made my internet experience safer and faster while not costing me a penny.

A more secure DNS server is a good idea

Maybe you are aware that your ISP DNS is not the most secure option you can find. If you aren't, there are plenty of choices out there that are simple to utilize. While you may not even think of the settings when you first set up your computer, it's worth taking a few minutes and swapping to a more secure DNS. You'll be thankful that you did.