We are all aware that everything is available online and that the internet significantly impacts all of us, especially children, whether for good or bad. Therefore, as a parent, you are responsible for knowing precisely what your child is doing online. Thus, even if your child knows how to delete all of the internet histories, this guide might still be quite useful.
How to Check Router History
Find your IP address
Your WiFi router’s manual or the back of your router both contain your IP address. You don’t have to worry, even if you can’t access your WiFi router physically or if you’ve misplaced the manual. We will provide you with an easy-to-follow instruction guide that you can use to get your IP address.
Steps to find IP address on Windows
- Click the Start button, then choose Command Prompt from the context menu.
- Type “ipconfig” into the Command Prompt window and hit the Enter key.
- =Find the section titled “Default Gateway“. The IP address of your router is indicated here.
Step to find IP address on Mac
- In the Menu Bar, simultaneously click the WiFi symbol and press “Option”.
- The Router section of the menu will have your WiFi router’s IP address listed.
Using System Preference
- Launch the System Preferences.
- Click on “Network”.
- Click your network connection, which is typically WiFi, on the left and select “Advanced” if it is not already chosen.
- Select the TCP/IP tab. Here, the word “Router” is displayed alongside the router’s IP address.
Using Terminal
- Use Launchpad, Utilities, or Spotlight to open Terminal.
- In the Terminal window, type “netstat-nr | grep default”.
- The term “default” will appear next to your router’s IP address.
Enter your IP address & sign in
Once you’ve located your IP address, you may type it in manually or copy and paste it into your browser’s search box. Depending on your router type, putting the IP address in your browser’s search bar will send you to the router’s dashboard.
Use your admin login information to log in. Once again, you may find these in the handbook or by looking at the bottom of your wireless router. Contact your ISP or the technical support staff of the router manufacturer if you can’t discover the credentials under the router.
Read more: How to View Router History
Check your history/View your logs
Depending on the brand of your router, router settings change. But the majority of routers have a function named “Logs”. All IP addresses connected to your router are listed in this function. Additionally, this is where all browsing history is kept. You should be aware of the IP address of the target device before looking through the logs. Head over to the Attached Devices.
On your device, this feature can go by a different name. However, you essentially want to find a page that lists all the linked devices’ IP addresses. Knowing the device’s IP address allows you to verify which websites were accessed from it. Click Logs to see a list of all the websites you visited while connected to your router.
Who Can See Your Browsing History?
Anyone with access to the WiFi router’s administrative panel can view your internet history. It makes no difference whether it’s at home, work, or public WiFi areas. Additionally, routers keep logs of your computer activity, including when and what you did.
All types of internet traffic, such as search history, browsing information, browser history, and other online activities, comes under this criteria. This data might be accessed by the network administrator using the router administration backend.
To examine more specific information about your online activities while connected to their network, they might also use powerful spying tools. Public WiFi administrators and owners know how precious your data is. They do this to collect your data, which they will then sell to advertisers in order to earn money.
How Can You Delete Your Router History?
Although entering into the settings and finding Logs, System Logs, Event Logs, or some other set of a similar name is required, this is most likely the technically correct approach to completely erase all history from a router.
For instructions on logging into your router, refer to the section above on how to check router history. A button to clear the log should be visible at the bottom of the page. After clicking it, you will be asked to confirm your desire to remove the logs. The data will all be deleted if you choose “yes”.
A recommended approach would be to copy and paste the logs to a hard drive before deleting them in situations where you might require the log contents in the future. You can also choose to delete the logs of a specific connected device to your router.
Your router’s settings have an “Attached Device” option accessible. As stated previously, the name of this option can vary between routers. All of the devices that are connected to your router are included in this option. You can double-click the IP address of the device. You can then clear the device’s individual logs.
How Long Can Your Router Keep Your Browsing History?
Several factors will determine the duration of a router’s browsing history. The first factor is how frequently the person clears their browsing history, and the second factor is their default configuration. Depending on the user and their chosen options, if the router has sufficient capacity, it can preserve logs for a few minutes to several months.
Also read: How to Check Browsing History on a WiFi Router
Conclusion
We sincerely hope that our step-by-step guide on how to check router history was simple to understand and follow. You may quickly view the router history, also including information about everyone who has used your WiFi connection, the websites they have viewed and dates and times of visits. Additionally, avoid connecting to a public network, as the owner may gather and sell your data.