Is there a way to Blacklist/Hide Wireless Networks in Windows 7 Available Networks List?

Question

There are a several Wireless networks viewable from my home which I want to blacklist/hide from the the available networks listing, by SSID Name.

Is this possible, and if not, why?

Nick · Answer 1 · 2010-10-11 01:03:12Z

It is possible if you are willing to set up a group policy.

Open the group policy console (Start > gpedit.msc > Enter)
Go to: Computer Configuration > Policies > Windows Settings > Security Settings > Wireless Network (IEEE 802.11) Policies
Click on "Action" in the menu and then click on "Create A New Wireless Network Policy for Windows Vista and Later Releases"
Give the policy a name and a description
Check "Use Windows WLAN AutoConfig service for clients" (as far as I know, this policy will only work with the built-in service - if you use a third-party tool to connect to access points, this policy won't work)
Go to the "Network Permissions" tab
Click "Add" and enter in the SSID you want to block and make sure "Permission" is "Deny"
Click "OK" and make any other changes (like disabling the ability to connect to ad-hoc networks, or hiding the SSID that is blocked from the user)

I don't have "Wireless Network (IEEE 802.11) Policies" as an option. Any ideas?
This is only something that exists for Windows Server 2003 and above to apply to a GPO from that domain down to the clients. It is unlikely you would be able to set this for your own personal computer. As for why you would not be able to do this - I can only assume that the risk (untrained user can't connect to any access point) vs. benefit (not having to look at another person's SSID) did not weigh in favor of adding this to Microsoft's consumer operating systems. In short - set a preferred network, and train the end-user.

1 Answer