[billylumbybillylumby]

Hey gang,

Excuse me if this has been done before, I couldn't find anything in the search. Sorry for the drudging content and its length but this is the backstory:

I just moved into a new place/new service provider and opted for the monthly 4gig limit rather than the unlimited. However my ISP is charging loads extra every month because we go way over that. It turns out we're uploading about 5 times as much as we're downloading (which is not possible).

Potentially, the reasons for this could be:

a) excessive upload-based gaming or a file sharing P2P program left on all the time (e.g. bittorrent, limewire) but this is not the case.

b) someone ILLEGALLY haha using my wireless although this is unlikely given I have changed the username/password, hidden the network etc and it's probably also unlikely that such an evil person would be using it mainly just to upload.

c) the ISP is at fault and owes me money/love

d) either my flatmate or myself have (unbeknown to us) a virus on one of our laptops that is uploading under our very noses. This is what my ISP conveniently suggested. So I'm trying to find out if we are, unfortunately both of us are too poor/reckless to afford anti-virus software.

I have OSX Tiger and have looked at Activity Monitor (Utilities folder) which suggests my downloading far exceeds my uploading so seems fine (unless there is a virus that hides uploading from this piece of software too??? -would this be likely? anyone have experience?)

...but we have been unable to establish dl/ul at all for her computer, an old iBook on OSX Jaguar (vers. 10.2) as Activity Monitor on this OS seems to come without the 'Network' tab where you can see your usage.

Is there an application (downloadable freeware or perhaps something i've missed on the computer) that measures internet usage for macs and that will work on this old beast?

I downloaded a widget for mine that reads from the Activity Monitor but as we know widgets are a recent invention. That was all I could find.

Any suggestions or help would be much appreciated.
Yours sincerely,
Billy.

[ghporter]

If both you and your flatmate are running anything other than Windows, the virus argument falls on its ugly face.

The P2P angle is possible unless you RELIGIOUSLY shut down all P2P apps whenever you're done.

Illegally using your wireless is the biggest possibility, since you mention a few security-like steps you've taken but NOT ENCRYPTION. Using WPA or WPA2 could prevent anyone from actually connecting to your network. Hiding the network name/SSID is like hiding your housekey in a better place than under the doormat; there are any number of freely available apps that will tell you FAST what any hidden network's name is.

Your search for a traffic tracker won't do you much good unless you track both yours and your flatmate's traffic, combine the numbers and then compare to the ISP's data for your account. You need something that works at the point where you connect with the ISP-a phone line or video cable connection.

First and foremost, control your network: use the AirPort Admin Utility's Access Control tab to allow ONLY the computers you want (by their AirPort IDs) to join your AirPort network. Then set up WPA on all the computers you want using your wireless-use a good, long, complex passphrase for good security, and see what happens. Renegade wireless users are a real problem, and the problem is worse because there are "warez", porn and other bad data distributors that like to use unprotected wireless networks to upload their badness so it's not traceable to them. Lock that door, Billy! Protect yourself!

Finally, I'm moving this to the Networking forum where you're likely to get more and better help than here in Applications.

[billylumbybillylumby]

Hey Glenn,

Thanks very much for the response!

Yes, sorry, I forgot to say, our wireless is WPA too... I just thought hiding it might make it even more safe. Is it common/easy for hackers to get through WPA? ...but i hear what you say about airport IDs - this is something I will address and see how it goes.

In terms of the P2P I'm pretty sure this isn't the source of the problem. I have shut sharing off completely and yes, shutting down is pretty religious anyway.

But I'm curious, why does the virus argument fall flat on its face? You're right, we're not on Windows. Do such things not exist on OSX?

I have already tracked my traffic and am pretty confident (at least given what Activity Monitor says) that my computer is not uploading significantly more than it is downloading. In fact it's uploading much less. I would be interested in looking at similar statistics for Joey's (that's her name) computer though.

Thanks.
Billy.

[analogika]

Originally Posted by billylumbybillylumby 

But I'm curious, why does the virus argument fall flat on its face? You're right, we're not on Windows. Do such things not exist on OSX?

No, they don't.

[hookem2oo7]

menumeters has the ability to give you readouts of total network usage since last boot

it's free, and has other cool features...

here's a screenshot of the pull-down menu that the network menumeter gives me...

http://hookem2oo7.no-ip.org/pics/menumeters.png

[ghporter]

Originally Posted by analogika 

No, they don't.

While viruses are possible on ANY platform, nobody's taken the time (and considerable effort) needed to write and distribute any really effective viruses for OS X. So for all intents and purposes, right now there are no OS X viruses.

[billylumbybillylumby]

YO! thanks everyone for their input.

i'm going to try to install menumeters on her laptop and alter my wireless settings. if neither of these highlight a problem i'm defintely going to ask to be reimbursed.

thanks for your advice.
Billy.