Carrier Massive data use . . .

[Andy002]

I'm with Consumer Cellular. Last month, on a Thursday, I got a notice from CC that my monthly data (5GB) was getting used up too quickly and that they would automatically bump me to a costlier plan. During that time in question, I was sitting in a restaurant with some buddies having lunch. My phone was on, but I was not using it.

I asked CC how so much data was being used so quickly (I've been with them since 2019 and it has never happened before) and they said probably from gaming. As noted above, I was not "gaming," which I never do anyway.

So the same thing just happened again, on two different days last week. One time it was something like 260 MB that was used in one shot, and less than that on another day. It was not anything I was doing, consciously anyway.

What's going on here? Can someone else be accessing my account? Wouldn't that show up as being another device?

 

[Apple_Robert]

260MB is not much at all. You can quickly use that much viewing video websites like YouTube, as well as browsing the web, uploading pics etc. Sounds like you are doing more on your phone than you were paying attention to.

 

[Apathist]

What's going on here?

As Apple_Robert suggested, 260MB is fairly inconsequential. I was on a 3GB plan with CC several years ago and obviously had to make an effort to conserve data usage. I certainly never gamed or viewed lengthy videos on my phone. Yet looking at my old statements I can find occasions when I still used hundreds of MB of data during a single session. It's very easy to do.

A guess might be that there was background or other unattended activity occurring on your phone that simply escaped your notice. Or perhaps you were using your cell connection when you thought you were on Wi-Fi.

I'm still on a low-data plan with another carrier and have found that setting my phone to Low Data Mode helps. I also keep Wi-Fi Assist turned off.

 

[Andy002]

Did everybody miss this part, from the first time it happened, a month ago? The phone was in my pocket, not being used.

During that time in question, I was sitting in a restaurant with some buddies having lunch. My phone was on, but I was not using it.

 

[Apple_Robert]

Did everybody miss this part, from the first time it happened, a month ago? The phone was in my pocket, not being used.

I read that part. Your phone is constantly searching for a cell signal. That uses data as well not to mention Location Services. As I previously said, you are complaining about data amounts that are very small.

Make sure background app refresh is turned off except when you are on Wifi and you can also turn off Location Services when not needed. There is no problem with your phone. You just have to learn how to manage your data use. The phone can tell you how much data you are using but, you will have to manually set the time period and reset it each month for it to be accurate.

 

[Bigwaff]

What's going on here?

Settings > Cellular > Cellular Data > Show All

All apps using your cellular data and how much. Turn off WiFi Assist, iCloud Drive, and iCloud Backup so they don’t use cellular data.

 

[Apathist]

The phone was in my pocket, not being used.

The location of the phone, or whether you were actively using it or not, wouldn't be of much relevance if the phone still had a cell connection and was performing any kind of network activity -- like downloading app updates, refreshing app content, backing up data to iCloud, or running any other automatic processes that you had not disabled or restricted as previous posts have advised.

 

[MacCheetah3]

What's going on here?

The first step is as @Bigwaff pointed out:

View how much data you’re using​

To see how much cellular data you’ve used, go to Settings

> Cellular, then do any of the following:

• See cellular data usage for individual apps: Scroll down to your list of apps, then tap Show All. The amount of cellular data used appears below each app. If you don’t want an app to use cellular data, you can turn it off for that app. When cellular data is off, apps use only Wi-Fi for data.
• See cellular data usage for individual system services: System Services appears above the list of apps in the cellular section. Cellular data can’t be turned on or off for individual system services.

You can view the data-usage statistics for an app from a current period, or view data statistics for apps that used data when you were roaming. To reset these statistics, go to Settings > Cellular, scroll to the bottom, then tap Reset Statistics.

If you’re using an iPhone with Dual SIM, you can see how much cellular data you’ve used with your selected cellular data number.

Note: To get the most accurate cellular data usage from a current period, contact your carrier.

Set cellular data usage for apps and services​

Go to Settings

> Cellular, then turn Cellular Data on or off for any app (such as Maps) or service (such as Wi-Fi Assist) that can use cellular data.

If a setting is off, iPhone uses only Wi-Fi for that service.

Note: Wi-Fi Assist is on by default. If Wi-Fi connectivity is poor, Wi-Fi Assist automatically switches to cellular data to boost the signal. Because you stay connected to the internet over cellular when you have a poor Wi-Fi connection, you might use more cellular data, which may incur additional charges depending on your data plan. See the Apple Support article About Wi-Fi Assist.

View or change cellular data settings on iPhone

On iPhone, turn cellular data and roaming on or off, set which apps and services use cellular data, and set other cellular options.

support.apple.com

By the way, there have been apps focused on this subject. One I’ve used once upon a time:

DataMan for iOS - XVision

Discover DataMan, the simplest and clearest app to track data usage on iPhone and Apple Watch. P.S. we invent many other awesome apps too :)

xvision.me