[SOLVED] Linksys DNS issue on a Mac

[LynnieLyn]

Late last year new Linksys routers started having severe DNS issues that would cause a computer to redirect to random websites without any control of the user. It most often seems to happen with Facebook redirecting to MySpace, but other sites do the same and lead to often scary websites from different countries. You have no idea what site you could end up on! This could be a security issue, not to mention very frustrating because it can be days, and hours of tinkering, before you're able to finally access a site without being redirected.

Anyway, my parents have a Linksys router, and are among the many who have this problem. I've tried my best to help them out, since they aren't exactly computer literate. I wouldn't call myself an expert either, but I at least do research to learn more about the problem. My mother says it's probably because their new Mac is 4G capable, yet they have 3G internet. Though I can see that causing potential problems, I know that's not what's making YouTube redirect to Yahoo, or Facebook redirecting to MySpace virtually every time they try to get on it. They've been having the issue for months, and it's getting worse. So now I'm turning to you guys for help.

I've found many solutions online, and many sound to be very good from what people have said. The best suggestion I could find was at http://homecommunity.cisco.com/t5/Wireless-Routers/WRT160N-V3-has-serioius-DNS-issues/m-p/295284#M154543
But they're all for Windows PCs, not Macs. So my basic question is-

How do I do this on a Mac?

I'm much more knowledgeable about PCs, so I'm lost when trying to search the system for a way to do this. I'm sure any info will be of help to anyone else who is having this issue and searching for a fix. So thank you in advance for any help you can offer.

PS. Here's some other sites with discussions about this Linksys issue if you're wanting to gain more info on it-
http://homecommunity.cisco.com/t5/Wireless-Routers/WRT160N-V3-has-serioius-DNS-issues/m-p/280327#M146716
http://davedrager.com/facebook-or-twitter-redirecting-to-myspace-or
http://michael-rice.blogspot.com/2009/11/facebook-redirects-to-myspace.html
http://www.brownbatterystudios.com/sixthings/2009/11/18/who-the-hell-is-samuel-garcia-the-facebook-redirect-problem/

 

[mrmez]

No Mac is 4G or 3G capable or incapable. If that makes sense.
Its like saying, my oven is wifi capable. They don't come in the same device.

From what you say this problem is on the router, so theoretically any computer you connect (Mac or otherwise) will have the same problem?

I suppose the first thing to do is reset your router. There is usually a little button at the back, hold it for a few sec and allow the router to reboot. This will reset all your settings, so make sure you know your password etc before. Depending on whether you are using a time machine you may not need to do anything. Most likely you need to access your router directly. They usually are accessible from an IP address, used in your case through Safari. Something like 192.168.0.1
From there you need to fill in your details. If you get no joy from there, sounds like a regular problem so id skip the above and simply return it.

 

[LynnieLyn]

Ok, so 4G/3G wouldn't matter in the least. I can understand that, but again, that's what my mother is saying might be causing the problem, not me. I'm sure it's the router.

They got a Belkin router this summer, but it wasn't compatible somehow, so they went back to the Linksys. I don't know if the new Linksys routers are still having this problem, but there were many issues all over the country late last year into early this year with devices made at that time. I'm trying to tell them that it's a security issue and they need to either learn how to fix it or get another router (whether a newer Linksys or another Belkin, or a Netgear, etc.), but they don't want to get another one and have it not work again. This is so frustrating. It could be a security issue because you never know when it will happen and what random site you'll go to. You could be in the process of buying something, or filling some personal info out, and when hitting "submit", you'll be redirected to some foreign site, and all that info you just entered could be availible for who-knows to see. Christmas season is fast approaching, and I don't want them having to deal with this while shopping online.

And yes, every computer on their home network has this issue. It's just the Mac is the main computer that is wired to the router so that's where the router is installed. All the others of course connect to the router (and therefore, internet) wirelessly. All the others are PCs, but it doesn't matter on what computers they are, what OS they use, or anything like that. It's the router that, when installed, has a corrupt IP address that causes all the computers to redirect to odd sites when you're trying to log in to other sites.

Resetting the router doesn't help, since it's an issue in the DNS from when the router was installed, not the actual router itself.

I don't understand exactly how it all works, but I tried to be as thorough as I could in figuring it out. I just hope I'm wording everything ok here. If you click on the links I provided, there is a lot to read, but they go much deeper into detail about the situation. 😉

 

[Ijack]

I would set your IP settings manually, rather than using DHCP, and use OpenDNS servers rather than the DNS server built into the router.

 

[LynnieLyn]

Yes, many of the links I provided include that as a solution. But the question still remains- How do I do that on a Mac?

 

[Ijack]

Have a look at this article.

 

[LynnieLyn]

Ah yes, now we're getting somewhere. Thank you so much! That should cover a big chunk of the solution, and hopefully I'll be able to put 2 and 2 together to come up with the rest. Wish me luck!

 

[Ijack]

Good luck!