Sometimes something happens on your computer or network and you suddenly start to wonder if there might be someone on the wireless network who shouldn't be there. In such cases, you wish you could quickly check which devices are connected to your wireless network. Fortunately, this is perfectly possible with Wireless Network Watcher.
Wireless Network Watcher
PriceFor free
Language
Dutch
OS
Windows XP/Vista/7/8/10
Website
www.nirsoft.net 10 Score 100
- Pros
- See all connected devices
- Clear descriptions
- Shows when first/last connected
- Negatives
- No live detection mode with alarm
Nirsoft's Wireless Network Watcher makes it easy to scan your wireless network to see which devices are connected to it. You don't have to take any complicated steps for that, just downloading and scanning the program is enough.
Scan network
When you have downloaded Wireless Network Watcher (note: for the Dutch version you need to download a separate language file from the website of the maker), the program starts scanning immediately. You will see a list of devices connected to the wireless network within a few seconds. The nice thing about this program is that the description of the device is also clear, in most cases you don't have to guess what kind of device it is.
Do not panic
The fact that the descriptions are very clear can also cause concern when you see a device that you do not recognize. What the Philips Hue was was pretty clear to me (my smart bulbs), but there was also a device branded Kreatel Communications. Oh dear, did I get hacked? Is my neighbor on my network? Fortunately, it all worked out. The advice is to remain calm, because it turned out that after a simple googling, Kreatel Communications was standing in front of KPN's TV receiver. In short, if you come across brand names that you do not know: Google offers the solution. If you see all the characters in a language you don't know, there might be more reason to worry, but even then: use a search engine first.
Conclusion
Wireless Network Watcher is a fantastic program that gives you immediate peace of mind when you discover that everything on your network is fine. Or, of course, you discover that something is wrong. The program cannot help you further, but at least you know that you should immediately change your WiFi password and restart the modem or router.
