# Cost of Broadband increasing but only moderate use



## onq (11 Oct 2011)

Apologies if this should be in another forum.
My broadband usage seems to have gone through the roof in recent months.

All of the family like to surf and we are all on Facebook - my son also enjoys Minecraft (or did before the current Beta release).
My point is that previously our 40Gb limit was more than adequate, but in the past two months we have headed north past 60Gb.

We have tried limiting the amount of game time and streaming videos we watch and we don't download films.
We don't watch a huge amount of RTE Player (2-3 times a month for say 30-40 minutes if we miss a show or the news)

My suspicions for this increased usage is the streaming ads and mini-videos that seem to be cropping up "down the page" on many of the websites I read, often on News Media outlets.
If you scroll down you'll see some little video or Flash animation (with sound, no less!) streaming away, while you think you're reading a text heavy and graphics-light web page.

I was wonder had any AAM readers a similar experiences and/or could the point the way to a best reduce the bandwidth consumption.
Total Abstinence unfortunately is not an option. 

TIA

ONQ.


----------



## p15574 (11 Oct 2011)

I would be surprised if it's down to the ads. However, you could alleviate this somewhat by using an ad blocker. For example, on Google Chrome there's a good one called AdBlock. There's also a Flash blocker (funnily enough, called 'FlashBlock') that you can enable on a site-by-site basis.

It could also, of course, be that your computer is a Zombie having been taken over by spammers and being used to send millions of emails...a thorough virus scan would be advisable, preferably using different ones - there are a few free online scanners.


----------



## onq (12 Oct 2011)

Thanks for the info and advice p15574.

My last outing with Google Chrome showed it to be far more perforated than Firefox, which I continue to use, having had similar issues with Firefox 4.0 and having regressed to 3.**.

The last time this happened we totally revamped the WinXP SP3 PC which is now running 

- Comodo Firewall
- AVG Anti-Virus
- Malwarebytes
- Spybot Search and Destroy
- TDSKiller

I'm reasonable sure its not infected and my upload usage suggests its not a mass-mailer, but I'll bear it in mind. Comodo should catch that. Apart from the fact that the user I normally surf with has no working e-mail client.

I'll keep watch though - we might discover something new


----------



## AlbacoreA (12 Oct 2011)

You need to log whats being downloaded. Someone or something is downloading something unusual.


----------



## GuitarDave (12 Oct 2011)

How secure is the password on your wifi? Try logging into the router and you'll see who's logged on in case somebody has it hacked.


----------



## onq (12 Oct 2011)

Thank you both for those suggestions.

I'll don my IT hat and see what I can find


----------



## ClubMan (12 Oct 2011)

If you suspect unauthorised use of your wireless connection then



Change the admin password and (if possible) disable "remote" admin over wireless
Secure the connection ideally using _WPA2 _and a "good" passkey
Consider locking down access to specific devices using _MAC _address based access restrictions
Consider disabling the _SSID _broadcast although this may just cause more hassle than it's worth and only offers marginal additional security

Actually - this article covers similar stuff and more ...

http://compnetworking.about.com/od/wirelesssecurity/tp/wifisecurity.htm


----------



## flattea2 (12 Oct 2011)

Its unlikely to be ads etc, certainly cant see it being 20gb's worth.

Its either 
1) something running in the background. Do you have any torrent programs? These can be a big culprit.
2) someone in the family using more than you think
3) if PC’s are left idle, they may still be connecting to internet and slowly but surely eating up your allowance
4) unauthorised usage as per clubman

Can you ask your broadband provider for a more detailed breakdown? Even dates etc may narrow it down.


----------



## ClubMan (12 Oct 2011)

Another option - switch off the modem/router when not in use and see if your usage decreases?


----------

