Virgin Media warns UK households breaking 'golden rule' of Wi-Fi at night

According to Virgin Media, almost 1 in 5 of its full-fibre broadband users (18%) are still consistently breaking "the golden rule".

Virgin Media has issued a broadband warning to millions of UK households who break the 'golden rule' of good Wi-Fi. According to Virgin Media, almost 1 in 5 of its full-fibre broadband users (18%) are still consistently breaking "the golden rule".

Virgin, which is rivalled by the likes of Sky, TalkTalk and more, says "the golden rule" to maintain a solid wireless connection at home is actually never switching off their Wi-Fi router overnight. Gareth Lister, who serves as Virgin Media O2's Director of Connectivity, has listed three rules that broadband users should never break to ensure a solid connection at all times.

Don’t switch your Hub off overnight, give your Hub space, make sure it’s out in the open and check your speeds via the Connect App, he said. Users who do this prevent their routers (and other online devices) from having overnight software updates.

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This can leave users with out-of-date hardware or force these updates to be made during the day. It can cause small, annoying issues that can easily be avoided. Routers do not consume much power, so turning them off for this reason won’t result in huge energy savings.

Keeping your router turned on will help keep your network stable during peak times. "Customers can minimise any possible disruption by keeping their hub on - allowing updates to take place automatically overnight - so their broadband and any connected devices are ready when they need them," Virgin Media O2’s Director of Connectivity, Gareth Lister, told The Sun.

“We continuously monitor customers’ broadband performance and may identify issues overnight which can be fixed remotely. We’re unable to do this if the router is off which is why we recommend customers leave them on."

“Many customers also have home phones and smart devices like speakers, TVs, doorbells and cameras that are connected to their home broadband," he explained. "If the hub is switched off, customers could find themselves unable to use their landline and these devices could stop working.”