Getting malware from router, etc.

[forjonny]

I have a router & use wireless in my own office. My spouse has her own username & office. She uses Ethernet with the router. She does have a "Hidden" wireless account that she uses occasionally. I am on a "guest" account that I use with my computer. I'm a tech & I work on client's computers. Some of the clients have infected computers. When I work on these infected client computer, is it possible for malware to get onto the router & affect her or other computers? We are not networked. Anyone know the effects of this?

[Tripredacus]

The router itself doesn't really have storage. It is not impossible but the malware would have to be specifically designed to be able to write to the router and outside of a TI, that isn't likely to be the case.

It is certainly possible to cause problems for other computers on the same subnet. You will need to look into your router settings to see if it has an option for client isolation on WLAN. That should prevent other wireless clients from seeing each other in addition to wired clients being able to see wireless. I've seen some routers where this is enabled by default. 

The obvious first thing you should not do is put an infected system on a network. Clean it first, then you can connect it. Otherwise if you are asking for how you can completely isolate an infected machine on a shared network, that is another story and may not be possible with your current hardware setup. Of course, we have no idea what network hardware you are dealing with.

[forjonny]

Yes we are not networked. I can't see her computer and she can't see mine. Separate wifi accounts with different names as well as passwords.

[Tripredacus]

You are networked. I do not know how the usage of accounts relates to the internal policies of the router. That is something you'll have to research if you don't provide the model to us.

[forjonny]

Are you saying that we are networked even if the two of use the same router and we have different SSIDs? Mine shows and her's is hidden. We use different printers and can't see each other. We are only concerned about if an affected computer can get onto all our computers thru the router is all really.

[Tripredacus]

2 computers connect to the same interface, so the possibility exists. Most (like 99.9%) of consumer routers never get updates or patched for CVEs. 

[D.Draker]

On 2/4/2025 at 11:01 AM, Tripredacus said:

The router itself doesn't really have storage. It is not impossible but the malware would have to be specifically designed to be able to write to the router and outside of a TI, that isn't likely to be the case.

What about the scandal with those Chinese routers they wrote have a tracking (or whatever) malware in them?

https://arstechnica.com/security/2024/01/chinese-malware-removed-from-soho-routers-after-fbi-issues-covert-commands/

[D.Draker]

I think they are designed to get infected.

"Malware turns home routers into proxies for Chinese state-sponsored hackers"

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2023/05/malware-turns-home-routers-into-proxies-for-chinese-state-sponsored-hackers/

[Tripredacus]

On 2/8/2025 at 11:08 AM, D.Draker said:

What about the scandal with those Chinese routers they wrote have a tracking (or whatever) malware in them?

https://arstechnica.com/security/2024/01/chinese-malware-removed-from-soho-routers-after-fbi-issues-covert-commands/

I was replying to the specific condition where an infected PC is put onto the network that contains a router. Those router issues you speak of come either that way from manufacturing, from a bad firmware update or from the internet.