Modem query

some time ago I queried a usage allocation for broadband with my ISP without getting very far.
However as they have changed their accounting dates, an interesting issue has arisen during my absence from the computer.

As we all were in NZ a few weeks ago, and our home unattended, my ISP account shows download and upload usage for the day before we got back. Only a very little .18mg, and CS for the ISP "think" it was probably someone contacting my modem...

How is this possible and why is it on my allocation? Is this some sort of security risk that someone can contact my modem and use up my MG allocation? Is this just because someone might have sent a large (joke) video to my email account waiting for me to open it?

Interestingly on the first three days we were in NZ, the account shows usage of 0.01 for each day for downloads. Now I am not being picky, but would like to understand the "how" process a bit better...

Secondly, has anyone else checked their daily usage history? Because I am way over on my "new" allocation, I just printed out this month's and the previous fortnight when they switched over. 2 days of what would have been normal usage, are listed on both "accounts" is this double accounting to get my usage up for the next period?

I have asked CS of the ISP about this, but wondered if any of you had experienced this before and were aware of the whys?

Well I'm afraid I can't answer your question, but was checking out a friends modem that had gone futu over the last week and there was quite a lot of activity showing on the modem log during times when the computer wasn't on and nobody was in the house..was about the same time telescum were working to solve a year long ongoing fault...but also found two lurking trojan horse virii that only camt to light when I tried to copy the hard drive..so as yet no idea of the cause but I'll be watching my own modem log with interest;)

I changed provider from Telecom.

They were telling me I was using my 1GB a month in one week, what rubbish, so I changed to World exchange and with us constantly online and 2 of using it we've never payed for more than 1.75GB
So not only are they more expensive and unreliable they are ripping you off!

Yes I wonder about that too. I remove all spyware, trojans etc regularly (although the trojans don't get to get in because I am running Avast!).

I have asked my ISP what is happening with the remaining 2 weeks of my monthly paid plan that they cut short with their change of cycle dates, so far no answer.

I agree, had my allowance not been reset at the new billing date, that my usage would be about normal, however on one cycle I have two weeks use, the other nearly 6 weeks (with one week absent from the computer) and they are telling me I am over? Don't think so!

My ISP in Aussie is Bigpond, part of Telstra... sound familar?

Swaggie, was the computer on while you were away? Was your email program open?

ISP monitoring systems are notoriously inaccurate, especially the online daily usage. I was watching a friend's usage carefully after I installed a wireless AP for him, he was concerned about his 5Gb/month limit. At two weeks into the month the daily usage showed 13Gb! I was in a frenzy, loading up passwords, enabling encryption, locking down Mac addresses etc. The next day another 1.1Gb was used.

As I watched every day, I copied all the previous records to a spreadsheet. Then I started to notice that some previous days figures were changing. That 1.1 Gb suddenly became 370Mb. It seems that it would change quite often, based on some voodoo the ISP were playing. In the end the month total was 5.5Gb.

I am starting to seriously doubt the actual accuracy of their logging. But how can we be sure? One way is to switch off your modem for 24 hours, and see if the ISP log any data. If so, go in with all guns blazing.

Wyseyes, my computer is shut down every night... and was most definately turned off for the 6 days I was in NZ. I did not even access my webmail during this time.

their answer was that "the modem might have been contacted" thus generating the small usage... but by who? It wasn't me and I am the only person to know the passwords etc.

I don't know enough of this stuff to make a worthy argument, but how would my usage go up, if it wasn't me or anyone else on my computer?

However I don't turn my modem off at the wall, just the computer.

Data usage is measured on incoming and outgoing data, no matter who initiating it. If I got the address of your modem, and pinged it every second (send small message, get small reply) for 24 hours, then you would get billed for 86400 messages and 86400 replies. Since a ping message is 63 bytes, then it would use a total of 10.38Mb.

Interesting though, that I would also get billed my my ISP for the same thing. Double dipping? Even phonecalls don't charge both the caller and callee for the same call.

Wyseyes should I turn off my modem of a night time and when away as well?

Part 2

The address of your modem *should* be hidden from the rest of the world by your ISP, using IP Masquerading and Network Address translation. The systems they use should not allow anyone else to find your address, in fact they can change your address at any time as it is dynamically allocated. Theoretically the only people who should be able to get your address is the ISP, and thus the only people who could 'contact your modem' is the ISP. So why should you have to pay for them to play games like that?

It sounds to me that the "contacting your modem" is a convenient excuse from your ISP to either explain away something they don't have a clue about, or to hide something devious that they are doing.

That said, people in the know do have ways of accessing their modems from the internet (ie me on business trip logging into a secure server behind my own modem), so this would be another excuse they could make on your query.

Swaggie, I only know enough to be dangerous. But, if it were me, if I was turning my computer off the 6 days I wld also turn my modem off (at the wall), and possibly even unplug it. Then I wld see what my daily usage archive said for the period that it was off. If there was usage logged again it for the period it was off/unplugged, I wld be ringing and asking to speak to supervisors until I either had an answer (they guesstimate usage?) or until I had some sort of conclusion/agreement that satisfied me.

Just my two cents worth.

Thanks Everyone.

so far today they haven't responded to my email yesterday where I ask about the double dipping of dates on the change over cycle, and also to my query of usage when I was in NZ. (thank crikey I have a record of that travel to substantiate that).

So will see what comes in.

But I take on board the issue of turning off the modem. Hope it also helps someone else too.

They cannot reply as the systems are down for maintenance....

Finally a reply... they are offering me a $30 200mg refund (or bonus in their words) so that will cover my overuse for this period.

they assure me the cut off date is now the 14th, although it shows on my daily history printout up to the 16/6, with the new daily use monthly cycle starting on the 15th, so I will keep an eye out.

Nothing though about the small usage amount while I was away. next time I will know though to turn off the modem at the wall and have no doubts whatsever!

swaggie what anti virus are you using...solved the friends problem when I tried to copy their hard drive...a nasty trojan horse virus that dials a remote host was the cause..got past AVG but my norton caught it

I just removed CA for Avast! on recommendations. Its caught a few things for me. Prior to that I was using Nortons, but with both Nortons and CA I was having OE problems which I don't have now....

Is this not a good move?