It happens. You’re using your MacBook and you just can’t seem to get connected online. It’s driving you nuts and at the same time you’re wondering why it’s happening. Then all of a sudden, you realize that your MacBook is connected to your neighbor’s Wi-Fi network.
That’s so irritating. Imagine all the time you’ve lost in just trying to figure out the reason why you can’t get connected. Only to find out that your MacBook is connected to the wrong Wi-Fi network. You can now prevent that from happening by learning how to forget a network on MacBook.
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Part 1. Why It’s Important to Forget A Network on MacBook
Not all Wi-Fi networks are safe. That’s why you have to be careful when going online. You just can’t have your MacBook connect to any network. If it connects to your neighbor’s Wi-Fi network, chances are, you’re not able to get a signal since it’s protected by a password. While that could be annoying, it’s the lesser evil as compared to connecting to a public Wi-Fi.
Unfortunately, it happens. There are times when you get connected to a public Wi-Fi. When you frequent the same mall or restaurant, it’s bound to happen.
Well, that’s not just annoying, it’s dangerous as well. You can’t have your MacBook connect to a public Wi-Fi network. Hence, is the reason why it’s a must to know how to forget a network on Mac.
The Dangers Of Connecting to A Public Wi-Fi
Yes, it’s dangerous to connect your MacBook to a public Wi-Fi. The reason being is because the information that’s sent from your MacBook to the access point is broadcasted in every direction for anybody to collect and to analyze. That could be very dangerous for you, your identity, and your MacBook.
The fact is, it’s very easy to collect data on a public Wi-Fi network. When you connect to a public Wi-Fi, the connection between your device and the Wi-Fi router is not encrypted. Unfortunately, that’s what makes it easy for your MacBook to connect to it.
Malls and restaurants offer free Wi-Fi connection as an added feature to their services. Yes, it does seem pretty convenient. Unfortunately, it’s not safe because the data that you’re sending online is not safe. Since it is not encrypted, it’s exposed for any hacker to intercept and to steal your data.
Beware Of Data of Loss and Leakage
You can call whatever you want. Whether you call it data leakage or data loss, the point is, information is exposed. When information is exposed, anybody can just steal and use it anytime.
These days, data are considered precious. As a matter of fact, they’re more precious than oil. In other words, your name, age, date of birth, home address, email address, telephone numbers, and everything about yourself are considered precious information.
Marketing firms would love to get hold of your personal information. It’s what they use to lure you with their products. It’s not just the marketing firms out there that want your personal information.
Hackers are also on the lookout for any personal information they can get hold of. They steal personal information to use it online. This is a crime called identity theft and in worst-case scenarios, criminals will use personal information to commit deadly crimes. This is not to scare you or anything, however, it’s true.
Hence, is the reason why you should always take care of your personal information. You shouldn’t be giving it away to start with.
Making sure you’re always connected to a safe network is also one good way for you to take care of your data. Luckily for you, it’s very easy to figure out how to forget a network on MacBook. Here’s how to fix that problem.
Part 2. How To Forget A Network on MacBook
Just follow the steps below to prevent your MacBook from connecting to other Wi-Fi networks
- Check on which network your Mac is connected to. You can do this by going up to the Wi-Fi menu. If you’re Mac is connected to a Wi-Fi network that’s not yours, then proceed to number 2.
- Go to the Apple menu on the top left.
- Select System Preference on the drop-down list.
- Click on Network.
- Go to the left side of the screen and click on Wi-Fi.
- Go to the Advanced button to see the order of Wi-Fi networks your Mac is searching. Your Mac will search for the first network you see on top.
- Choose the network that you want your Mac to connect to and drag it to the top of the list.
- Remove the network that you want your Mac to forget by clicking on it.
- Click on the minus sign you see under the box.
- Click on the OK button.
- Click on Apply on the next screen.
That’s how to forget a network on MacBook. As you can see, the process is very easy to do. Once you’re able to remove a network, you wouldn’t have to worry about it after.
You can easily avoid connecting to your neighbor’s Wi-Fi network and at the same time, avoid connecting to any public Wi-Fi that can dangerously expose data from your MacBook.