7 Smart Ways to Secure Your Wireless Printer & Keep Your Home Network Safe

7 Smart Ways to Secure Your Wireless Printer in 2026 and Keep Your Network Safe

Wireless printers are incredibly convenient.

A laptop in the kitchen, a desktop upstairs and several phones can all send documents to the same printer without anybody having to find a USB cable.

But that convenience comes with something businesses and home users often overlook:

Your wireless printer is another network-connected computer.

Modern printers can have their own operating system, web-based administration portal, Wi-Fi connection, firmware, cloud-printing features, internal storage and network services. Some multifunction printers can also scan documents directly to email, cloud storage or network folders.

That means they deserve more attention than simply taking them out of the box, connecting them to Wi-Fi and forgetting about them for the next seven years.

The National Cyber Security Centre's general guidance for connected devices recommends changing default credentials, keeping devices updated and disabling features you don't need. Printer manufacturers give similar advice; HP, for example, recommends changing passwords, applying firmware updates and turning off functions such as Wi-Fi Direct when they aren't required.

Here are seven sensible ways to secure a wireless printer in 2026.

1. Change the Printer's Administrator Password

Start with the administrator account.

Many printers have a built-in web management interface, often called an Embedded Web Server or something similar. Entering the printer's IP address into a browser may allow you to change its network configuration, security settings and other important options.

That interface needs protecting.

Modern devices are increasingly shipped with unique initial credentials rather than universally shared passwords. UK connected-device security rules introduced requirements intended to prevent manufacturers supplying products with easily discoverable common default passwords.

However, that doesn't mean you should leave the factory credential unchanged forever.

Some printers use a password or PIN printed on the device itself. Epson documentation, for example, shows models where the initial administrator password is the product's serial number or a number printed on its label, and recommends changing it before use.

Set a strong, unique administrator password that isn't reused anywhere else.

For a business printer, that password should ideally be controlled by whoever manages your IT rather than being written on a Post-it note attached to the printer.

And don't confuse the printer administrator password with the Wi-Fi password. They protect different things.

2. Keep the Printer's Firmware Updated

People generally remember that Windows and smartphones need updates.

Printers?

Not so much.

Firmware is the software built into the printer itself, and vulnerabilities can be discovered in it just like they can in Windows, browsers or firewalls.

That is not hypothetical. Printer manufacturers continue to publish security advisories for vulnerabilities affecting printer management interfaces and firmware. Epson, for example, published a security advisory covering a WebConfig command-execution vulnerability affecting particular products.

Check whether your printer supports automatic firmware updates.

If it doesn't, periodically visit the manufacturer's support service and check whether updated firmware is available for your exact model.

Businesses should ideally include network printers in their wider asset and patch-management process rather than leaving them outside normal IT maintenance.

There is another important question to ask:

Is the manufacturer still supporting the printer at all?

Keeping an ancient printer indefinitely because “it still prints” can become a security problem if the manufacturer no longer provides firmware fixes.

The purchase price of a replacement printer may eventually be considerably less than the risk created by an unsupported network device.

3. Secure the Wi-Fi Network the Printer Uses

Protecting the printer while leaving the wireless network wide open doesn't achieve much.

Your router or wireless access points should use modern Wi-Fi security, with WPA2 or preferably WPA3 where all required devices support it, together with a strong wireless password.

Avoid obsolete security standards.

You should also change the router's own administrator credentials rather than assuming the Wi-Fi password protects its configuration interface.

This matters because the router controls the network your printer and other devices rely upon. In April 2026, the NCSC warned about attackers exploiting vulnerable routers for DNS hijacking, illustrating why network equipment should be patched and securely configured rather than treated as something you install once and never revisit.

For businesses, Wi-Fi security should go further than simply having one password that everybody has known for six years.

Staff devices, guest devices and business infrastructure may warrant different networks and access policies.

Which leads nicely to the next point.

4. Consider Separating Printers and Other Connected Devices

One of the recommendations often given for IoT devices is to place them on a separate network.

That's good advice — but it needs doing correctly.

You might create separate VLANs or networks for areas such as:

Business computers

Printers

CCTV and IoT devices

Guest Wi-Fi

The purpose is to reduce unnecessary communication between devices.

If a poorly secured smart device becomes compromised, an attacker should not automatically gain unrestricted access to laptops, servers and other sensitive systems.

The NCSC recommends network controls designed to make lateral movement more difficult after an attacker gains an initial foothold.

However, don't simply put your printer onto the router's standard guest Wi-Fi and assume everything will work.

Many guest networks intentionally prevent connected devices from communicating with each other or with the main network. That's excellent for guest security but potentially useless for printing.

A properly designed business network can instead use VLANs and firewall rules that permit only the traffic required for printing while preventing unnecessary access elsewhere.

For a home user, this may be overkill.

For a business with servers, confidential information and dozens of network devices, segmentation becomes much more valuable.

5. Turn Off Printer Features You Don't Use

Modern printers often support a surprising number of communication methods.

Depending on the model, you might find:

Wi-Fi Direct

Bluetooth

AirPrint

Web Services

Cloud printing

FTP

Telnet

SNMP

Remote administration

Scan-to-email

Scan-to-network folders

You probably don't need all of them.

Every unnecessary service is another feature that needs configuring, maintaining and potentially patching.

If you don't use it, consider disabling it.

Wi-Fi Direct deserves particular attention.

Wi-Fi Direct allows devices to communicate directly with the printer without necessarily going through your normal wireless network. It can be convenient, but if nobody uses it, there may be little reason to leave it running.

HP specifically recommends switching Wi-Fi Direct off when it isn't needed.

For business printers, your IT provider can review the available protocols and remove old or unnecessary services.

The principle is simple:

The fewer doors you leave open, the fewer doors you need to defend.

6. Be Careful With Remote and Cloud Printing

Being able to print something at the office while sitting at home can be useful.

But ask whether you genuinely need that capability.

If the printer supports remote or cloud printing, make sure you understand:

Which account controls it?

Does that account use multi-factor authentication?

Who can send documents to the printer?

Can old users still access it?

What happens when an employee leaves?

The same applies to printer companion apps and manufacturer cloud accounts.

Protect them with unique credentials and MFA where the service supports it.

Avoid exposing a printer's web-management interface directly to the internet.

In the overwhelming majority of homes and small businesses, there should be no reason for somebody anywhere on the internet to be able to browse directly to the printer's administration page.

Remote administration should normally happen through properly secured management tools, VPN access or other controlled mechanisms rather than simply opening ports on a router.

7. Remember the Documents, Not Just the Device

Printer security isn't only about hackers controlling the printer.

There may also be sensitive information physically sitting in the output tray.

Payroll information.

Contracts.

Legal documents.

Customer details.

Financial reports.

Medical information.

Passwords or recovery codes.

In a home office, this may not matter very much.

In a busy workplace with a centrally located multifunction printer, it absolutely can.

Business-grade printers may support features such as secure or PIN printing, where a document remains queued until the employee enters a code or authenticates at the device.

That can be useful for confidential information.

You should also consider what happens to documents that are scanned or stored on the printer.

Some multifunction devices contain internal storage that may retain configuration information or document-related data.

Before selling, returning or disposing of an old printer, check the manufacturer's instructions for performing a secure reset and removing stored information.

For businesses, printers should therefore be part of the normal device lifecycle rather than disappearing onto eBay while still containing company configuration.

Don't Forget the Rest of the Network

A secure printer on an insecure network isn't much use.

Good wireless printer security therefore sits alongside wider cyber-security controls.

Keep computers updated.

Use supported operating systems.

Enable MFA on important accounts.

Protect the router and firewall.

Use endpoint security.

Keep backups.

Remove unsupported connected devices.

And know what is actually connected to the network.

The NCSC has highlighted default passwords, unpatched devices, outdated protocols and poor configuration as security concerns around enterprise connected devices.

That final point is particularly relevant for businesses.

It is surprisingly common to find forgotten printers, CCTV equipment, old wireless access points and other devices quietly sitting on company networks years after anybody last considered their security.

Do You Need to Turn Your Printer Off Every Night?

Older security advice sometimes recommends switching a wireless printer off whenever it isn't being used.

There is nothing inherently wrong with doing that, particularly for a printer used only occasionally.

But in a business environment it isn't the most important security measure.

A printer that is properly patched, securely configured, protected by strong credentials and restricted to the network access it actually needs is far more important than relying on somebody remembering to switch it off at 5:30 every evening.

If nobody needs a device for weeks at a time, disconnecting it certainly reduces its exposure.

But don't use the power button as a substitute for security.

Wireless Printers Should Be Managed Like Other Network Devices

That's really the key message.

In 2026, a wireless printer shouldn't be viewed as a harmless box of ink or toner.

It is another connected endpoint on your network.

For a home user, securing it might take only a few minutes:

Change the administrator password, update the firmware, secure your Wi-Fi and disable features you don't use.

For a business, the approach should be more structured.

Printers should be inventoried, patched, properly configured, segmented where appropriate and eventually removed when they fall out of manufacturer support.

Those simple steps can prevent an easily forgotten device becoming the weakest part of an otherwise well-protected network.

Need Help Securing Your Business Network?

Hamilton Group can help businesses secure more than just their computers.

We provide managed IT support, network and Wi-Fi management, firewall security, endpoint protection, Microsoft 365 security, cyber-security monitoring, backup and disaster recovery, and management of connected business devices.

We can help identify what's connected to your network, remove unnecessary risks and make sure ageing or insecure equipment isn't being overlooked.

And when your team needs IT support, our aim is to make first contact within 15 minutes.

Call Hamilton Group on 0330 043 0069 or visit hgmssp.com to speak with one of our IT and cyber-security experts.