Genealogy Chat

We are on BT option 1 which is 2GB, got an email today saying our December broadband usage was 26.7GB. Have phoned them and because we normally average between 1.9GB & 3.1GB it is possible that someone is hooking into our wireless router even though we have it encrypted. They told us that over the last 4 days we have already used 3.4GB and have advised us to do things, 1 contact the technical help desk for our router, will get my hubby to do that and 2 to download a free ‘ADSL usage checker or monitor’ they told me to be careful to only download from a known company as there are rouge ones, but they are not allowed to recommend one. HELP! anyone know any decent one’s? Will google ADSL usage checkers when hubby gets in but neither of us will know what company’s are the good one’s. Will check your replies later this evening.

I should change the password on your router before you do anything else. On mine, it is any easy job to log on to the router (which has an interface that works in a web browser: I just enter the IP address of the router and then my administrator password). From there, I can see who is logged on, and if I want to, I can beef up the security by specifying the MAC addresses that can log on, regardless of passwords and encryption. If this sounds complicated, it isn't, particularly, but you do have to either know what you're doing (we are talking about networking, after all) or be prepared to read the manual carefully, or get help from someone else.

I'd change my broadband supplier - far easier!! Seriously, you obviously use it quite a bit so it would be worthwhile considering finding a supplier who offers unlimited usage.

I don't pretend to understand this but have Img broadband - with unlimited usage. I am connected for at least 100 hours per week, I rarely switch off at all. I assumed that the 1 mg bit referred to the SPEED, not the amount of hours you could use it? I pay a flat, inclusive fee of £35 per month - line rental, free calls 24/7 and unlimited I mg broadband. OC

Seriously, if someone has managed to connect to your router, then changing ISP will make no difference - they will just gobble up your new bandwidth allocation. Many services are unlimited (and priced accordingly), but still subject to a 'fair usage' policy. Are you sure your teenaged children haven't just discovered the exciting world of downloading music (and worse video) and generating the bandwidth useage at home?

OC the 1meg is speed. Unlimited means there are no restrictions on total data flow. One DVD is 8GB so heavy downloading is easy. Joseanne do as Clive says and see if you can spot the intruder. It will be on something like local network DHCP list. Change your encryption password. If it is an intruder who has software to 'sniff' your network key they may not know how to get round the MAC address filter. Your router may also allow you to limit the number of users. If an intruder tries to join 'over the number' he or you will be blocked. This will show if someone is trying to log on. Bob

Many Thanks all, Think we are going to get someone round to look at it as we couldn't really understand things when we looked into it last night. And we don't want to mess things up by changing things we shouldn't. No the children [aged 25 & 19] haven't been downloading music or videos, daughter only got back from Scotland last night and son has hardly used it this week.