How does Verizon know my wireless network key?
ronzie1
Contributor - Level 2

When I go to my account page on the Verizon web site, it offers to display the wireless key.  How does Verizon know what it is, since I set my own instead of using the default?  Are they able to remotely get it from my router?  Could some nefarious person get it using the same method?

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Re: How does Verizon know my wireless network key?
smith6612
Community Leader
Community Leader

Verizon has backdoor access to the FiOS routers whihc is what allows them to display the keys on both the TV and on the Web. So far, the backdoor method of getting into the router seems to be secured using what would normally be Public/Private Key authentication at least to my knowledge, so chances of exploiting it are pretty low.

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Re: How does Verizon know my wireless network key?
viafax999
Community Leader
Community Leader

@ronzie wrote:

When I go to my account page on the Verizon web site, it offers to display the wireless key.  How does Verizon know what it is, since I set my own instead of using the default?  Are they able to remotely get it from my router?  Could some nefarious person get it using the same method?


They have a backdoor on port 4567.  Go into firewall setting, port forwarding rules and you'll see it there as a PF rule marked Verizon FIOS Service forwarding to destination 127.0.0.1 - local host (i.e. the router)  You cannot delete or edit that rule but obviously there are several ways to disable the access if it really worries you.  However as posted earlier it's pretty secure, of course whether the Verizon web site iteslf is as secure is a somewhat unknown factor.

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Re: How does Verizon know my wireless network key?
ronzie1
Contributor - Level 2

@viafax999 wrote:

They have a backdoor on port 4567.  Go into firewall setting, port forwarding rules and you'll see it there as a PF rule marked Verizon FIOS Service forwarding to destination 127.0.0.1 - local host (i.e. the router)  You cannot delete or edit that rule but obviously there are several ways to disable the access if it really worries you.  However as posted earlier it's pretty secure, of course whether the Verizon web site iteslf is as secure is a somewhat unknown factor.



I created a rule in advanced filtering to drop any packets sent to that port. "Input Rule Sets"->"Broadband Connection (Coax) Rules": "TCP  Any -> 4567" "Source Address Any" "Destination Address Any" "Operation Drop".

When I test the port while the rule is active using shields up at grc.com or the port checker at canyouseeme.org it appears to be blocked, and it is reachable when I deactivate the rule.  Does Verizon's undeletable rule supersede mine?  Why do the port checking sites say it is unreachable?

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Re: How does Verizon know my wireless network key?
viafax999
Community Leader
Community Leader

I would have figured that would disable it too.  It responda that way because there is no response to the port checker query..

Personally I disabled it by putting my own router as the gateway, however that means that if I have an issue VZ won't help me much because they can't get to the router.  I would guess that forwarding that port from MY gateway router to the VZ router would re-enable it.

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Re: How does Verizon know my wireless network key?
ronzie1
Contributor - Level 2

@viafax999 wrote:

I would have figured that would disable it too.  It responda that way because there is no response to the port checker query..

Personally I disabled it by putting my own router as the gateway, however that means that if I have an issue VZ won't help me much because they can't get to the router.  I would guess that forwarding that port from MY gateway router to the VZ router would re-enable it.


I have TV and so I have to use the Verizon supplied Actiontec router to go from coax to ethernet to connect to my LAN and for the guides and other TV stuff to work. I guess I can add a wireless access point and then turn off wireless in the Actiontec.

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Re: How does Verizon know my wireless network key?
viafax999
Community Leader
Community Leader

@ronzie wrote:

I have TV and so I have to use the Verizon supplied Actiontec router to go from coax to ethernet to connect to my LAN and for the guides and other TV stuff to work. I guess I can add a wireless access point and then turn off wireless in the Actiontec.


You can do this if you have remote dvr 

http://www.dslreports.com/faq/15993

See this thread too

http://forums.verizon.com/t5/FiOS-Internet/Solution-to-router-reset-issue-with-Actiontec-routers/td-...

I have  fios tv too and I replaced the router with no issues. As I don't have media manage or remote dvr I had Verizon change my provisioning to ethernet and then  I just put my own router as the gateway on subnet 192.168.0 and connected the Verizon router on subnet 192.168.1 via an ethernet lan to wan connection and forwared all the verizon fios service ports from my router to the Verizon router.  So then the Verizon router just handles the STBs via the moca connection and all other in house stuff is on my network.

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Re: How does Verizon know my wireless network key?
jumpin68ny
Master - Level 2

if you have the My fios app for the Iphone (I would assume IPAD) when you scroll down to My Wifi it will show your SSID and Password.  There is no way to prevent the display of the password in the app.  The only way to prevent that is disable WLAN on the VZ Actiontec for WLAN and use something else.