Skyrocketing Broadband Usage

[bowjest]

I've been out most of today and have only turned on my MBP to edit a couple of documents and then send them off to people.

I've just logged into my MSP's homepage and had a look at my usage and see that I've somehow managed to use 1.8GB of my monthly allocation.

Yesterday it was over 2GB (and I was out most of yesterday as well).

I would say that either someone has hacked our router or a family member has been caning an online TV service if it weren't for the fact that my SurplusMeter installation says that I've downloaded some 1.5GB of data today.

I just don't get it. There's no way I've used that much data today editing a couple of Word docs and then emailing them. Is there some way to check what's going on here? Have I possibly got some sort of virus and don't realise it?

Any help and advice appreciated.

Bowjest

 

[GGJstudios]

Have I possibly got some sort of virus and don't realise it?

Macs are not immune to malware, but no true viruses exist in the wild that can run on Mac OS X, and there never have been any since it was released over 10 years ago. The only malware in the wild that can affect Mac OS X is a handful of trojans, which can be easily avoided by practicing safe computing (see below). Also, Mac OS X Snow Leopard and Lion have anti-malware protection built in, further reducing the need for 3rd party antivirus apps.

Mac Virus/Malware FAQ​

1. Make sure your built-in Mac firewall is enabled in System Preferences > Security > Firewall
   
   
2. Uncheck "Open "safe" files after downloading" in Safari > Preferences > General
   
   
3. Disable Java in your browser (Safari, Chrome, Firefox). This will protect you from malware that exploits Java in your browser, including the recent Flashback trojan. Leave Java disabled until you visit a trusted site that requires it, then re-enable only for the duration of your visit to that site. (This is not to be confused with JavaScript, which you should leave enabled.)
   
   
4. Change your DNS servers to OpenDNS servers by reading this.
   
   
5. Be careful to only install software from trusted, reputable sites. Never install pirated software. If you're not sure about an app, ask in this forum before installing.
   
   
6. Never let someone else have access to install anything on your Mac.
   
   
7. Don't open files that you receive from unknown or untrusted sources.
   
   
8. For added security, make sure all network, email, financial and other important passwords are long and complex, including upper and lower case letters, numbers and special characters.
   
   
9. Always keep your Mac and application software updated. Use Software Update for your Mac software. For other software, it's safer to get updates from the developer's site or from the menu item "Check for updates", rather than installing from any notification window that pops up while you're surfing the web.

That's all you need to do to keep your Mac completely free of any Mac OS X malware that has ever been released into the wild. You don't need any 3rd party software to keep your Mac secure.

For your download situation, you might check Console.app to see if there's any information that can shed some light on your usage. Also, Launch Activity Monitor and change "My Processes" at the top to "All Processes", then look to see what apps or processes might be accessing the web.

 

[bowjest]

Thanks, GGJStudios.

I'll have a read of all the points you supplied and hopefully can isolate the problem.

The only thing I think it might be upon reflection is that I recently installed Chrome to see how it responds and have about 4-5 tabs open, so perhaps one of them was on a web page with a lot of moving content that was sucking down the data in question.

Best,

bowjest

 

[bowjest]

Ok, call me crazy, but it looks like the problem here is iTunes.

I've turned off all my apps except for iTunes and SurplusMonitor and started streaming a movie from my MBP to AppleTV.

I notice that once the movie starts playing, the DOWNLOAD amount to my computer increases by .1MB every second to second and a half. If I stop iTunes, the download also stops.

Why would iTunes be downloading anything if all I'm doing is streaming a movie to AppleTV? Is there any way to stop this from happening as it's bleeding me out of my monthly broadband allocation.

Thanks,

bowjest