Just got an e-mail from BT saying that my Broadband usuage for November is already at 28 GB (My monthly allowance which runs from the 1st of each month,  is 40GB).

 

This is a bit of a surprise as they say that my average monthly usuage for the last 12 months has been 19GB a month.

 

I've tried to think of what could have caused this. I don't stream videos. Only occasionally stream 32k radio. And basically do alittle browsing and an equal amount of e-mails and on-line purchasing/banking and, of course, occasional posting on this place.Exceptionally, I installed a new hardisk (SSD)  on my desktop and therefore had to download updates for Windows and Office and other some other minor downloads. On my estimate, this would only account for 2 GB max, if that.

 

On BT's average, my usuage at this point in the month should normally be 9.5 GB and, with the addition of the extra 2GB, should be 11.5 GB. Its currently showing 36GB.

 

Anybody else, had experience of broadband usuage suddenly jumping up like that and what causes it ?

 

 

Nick

Apps on smart devices?

do you play games online? playstation/xbox?

Is your router passworded? If not someone could be accessing your net and downloading.

There was also an issue with some BT p2p networking being "stuck on" thus customers internet being used without their knowledge. I can't remember all the details though...

er, pardon my pedantry but.....

you say you just got the email and quote usage of 28GB, then at end of the post you say your usage is 36GB... heck  of a jump just while typing.

I'd suggest your estimate for updates etc is somewhat optimistic and you've probably downloaded a lot more than that.

As others have suggested, see about apps on smartphones/tablets (though that would still be quite some doing - although TomTom for the piephone is almost 2GB by itself every time it updates)

I'd also be checking your router etc was properly secured and you're not allowing free access to the entire neighbourhood or similar through network sharing on your PCs....

Just to add maybe if you do find out it is you, maybe it's time to look at an alternative package? I couldn't be limited it'd drive me mad.

 

I just last night alone downloaded the best part of 25GB, just on two games. Whilst doing all my other normal internet stuff such as; online gaming, browsing 'tinterwebs, forums, emails, work bits and pieces.

I have a 50Gb "Peak" limit and unlimited "Off Peak"; even if I do wander over the 50 (rare these days), the cost is pretty cheap - something like £1 per GB

The BT usage monitor is useless, it insisted I had used 28GB in 8 days, when I did not even have a working internet connection due to the storm. Luckily I don't care as I am on the truly unlimited infinity2 package. The usage monitor has my monthly average at more than 100GB.

 

There are lots of reports of users having used loads of data when in reality they have hardly used any.

The BT usage monitor is useless, it insisted I had used 28GB in 8 days, when I did not even have a working internet connection due to the storm. Luckily I don't care as I am on the truly unlimited infinity2 package. The usage monitor has my monthly average at more than 100GB.

 

There are lots of reports of users having used loads of data when in reality they have hardly used any.

Yup that's what I was getting at in my earlier post.

I got a similar email asking me to log in to check or view the attached file.

I don't use BT

28gb warning is often just a sale ploy. I get this almost every month around 28th/29th.  I am on a 40gb deal and they keep trying to say I should move to 80GB!

Have you got Netflix or similar, as l got stung over my allowance for watching them!

So updated to infinity 2 and now no problem, and surprise was cheaper than before!

I've checked the BT Account on-line (Without using the link in the e-mail) multiple times this week and it is showing 36 GB now.

 

I don't  use my BB curve thru the desktops wi-fi link very often and haven't used it this month. Regularly use the Playbook thru the wi-fi link and there haven't been usuage problems earlier in the year.

 

Only got the e-mail the beginning of this week, so suuspicion falls on the new SSD install on the Desktop which was completed at the end of last week. Thinking about it, I did  temporarily install IL2 Cliffs of Dover on the SSD to see how fast it would go with a six core processor + SSD. Of course that package  relies on the Steam product. I'm wondering if that was the culprit ? But, that said I only played it for an hour ! If that is the case, then it means that the thing sucked down 17Gb (28-11) in an hour on  a line that is rated at 40mb sec download (Including control overheads) - Is that feasible ?

 

Other possibility is that the usuage relates somebody else using the  BT Fon facility I had set up on the home hub.

 

And it seems that even after I uninstalled COD at weekend, the data usuage continued to rise from 28GB (Monday's e-mail, which probably is correct at Sunday) to 36 GB today.

 

After getting the e-mail on Monday, I reset the HomeHub  (This disables Bt Fon), changed the wi-fi password and limited the hours of transmission and changed HH the passwords just-in-case. I also installed a usuage monitor.  I also set up the HH with a remote control on the leccy, so that most of the time the power is off. So far the usuage meter is showing about 900Mb use from Tuesday (300mb a day). That's below my usual daily average of 600mb (19GB/30).

 

It looks like BT data usage meter is wide of the mark i.e BT show just short of 8 GB since used since Tuesday. My monitoring software (Shaplus) shows 900mb.

 

 

Nick

Edited 14 November, 201312 yr by Clunkclick

28gb warning is often just a sale ploy. I get this almost every month around 28th/29th.  I am on a 40gb deal and they keep trying to say I should move to 80GB!

That was my initial suspicion. This was the sort of tactics they used 18 months ago to get me off of a 5Mb connection and onto Infinity.When I checked my on-line BT account it was sporting one of their adverts for Infinity 2 @ 80Mb for only £5 extra a month and unlimited usuage.

 

If money was no object, I wouldn't mind. But it is of concern at the moment and will continue to be for the next six years. Also,  I have no need for an 80 GB connection, as I'm not interested in streaming films or football (Horror !) - just the occasional You Tube vid and some foreign radio streaming.  But until my pension comes in next year, thanks to Dave and George, I'm living on savings, so subsidising BT's junior scribblers to the sum of an extra £60 a year is not a priority. 

 

If I do get charged extra, I'm taking it to OfTel.

 

And what do you know. New BT CER (Chief Executive robber) this year, Mr Paterson.

 

Nick

Edited 14 November, 201312 yr by Clunkclick

Does your meter show data up and down?? BT meters total up traffic both ways.

However I do agree, their metering is awfully dodgy; I had issues a couple of years ago and only got my ISP to admit there was a problem by recording my own usage and comparing with the hourly usage sats from the BT system; it was showing significant usage at times my system off-line. The clincher came with it showing me using the internet during a 6 day period when my line was out of service due to a cable breakage under the road outside.

It turned out to be a fault in the exchange equipment.

Yeah. It shows up, as well as down - the app is displayed in the system tray and the figures change (Upwards) when I do a Google search. I think also the total it displays includes my local network usuage !

 

The BT account is now showing 35.53 GB. So that's 7.53 GB used since Tuesday.

 

My monitor is showing 940.59 MB used since Tuesday.

 

If it is a fault, hopefully it will self-audit and raise a ticket itself  . . . I'm living in dream land again.

 

If its a sales ploy, as others have suggested, then it will continue no doubt hoping that the desire of customers to do Xmas transactions will pressure them into doing the quick easy fix and opting for the upgrade to 80GB and unlimited usuage.

 

Bearing in mind the investment made in FTTC by the previous CEO Mr livingstone (Now one of Dave's government ministers) there must be a fair amount of pressure to get the capacity well used and the revenue streams coming in. But that shouldn't be my problem.

 

 

Postscript

 

Looks like its a fairly widespread problem this year:-

 

http://community.bt.com/t5/Other-BB-Queries/Broadband-Usage-Impossible/td-p/955796/page/3

 

What's the betting a third party organisation, on contract, does the monitoring for BT.

 

 

 

 

Nick

Edited 15 November, 201312 yr by Clunkclick

The issue I had didnt self fault diagnose; in fact the remote test kept saying everything was hunk-dory. It wasnt until an engineer actually noticed it was locked up while doing some work in the cabinet that it got reset.

 

In other words the damned thing is still in the box and might do the same thing again at any time!!