Forum Discussion

nadeeja's avatar
nadeeja
New Contributor II
4 months ago

Huge spike in WiFi Data Usage

Hello, 

I've experienced a unexplained spike in data usage in the last two billing cycles. Cox support was of no help in identifying why. No unusual devices are connected to my network, and I haven't had any dramatic changes that would cause a sudden spike in usage. 

  • April cycle: 599 GB used
  • May cycle: 675 GB used
  • June cycle: 1252 GB used (spike) - 79% was from "Web browsing & apps"
  • July - 10 days in to cycle: 673 GB used (more than 50% in ~10 days). -- So far, 89% is from "Web browsing & apps"

I am unable to get usage info for the April/May and other previous cycles. Has anyone else experienced this? What can I do? And how can I find out what is causing this? In June was the very first time I've gotten this message, followed by July. I am very confused here, and Cox support was of no help. 

DATA CAP
    • Darkatt's avatar
      Darkatt
      Honored Contributor
      30 days ago

      Are you using a pano modem, or your own modem/router? Cox's data monitor is checked by a third party for accuracy, and is 99.99% accurate. I have tested it versus my Netgear RAXE300 router and it's dead on. 

      Do you have amazon echo or dot? They can go into a loop sending and receiving audio to amazon and using up a LOT of data, as well as sharing your data with other amazon customers. They say it's minimal, but how can you tell?

  • jaw005's avatar
    jaw005
    New Contributor II
    2 months ago

    This is happening to me right now. Did the spikes ever stop for you?

    Never been over 600/month and now being told over 1300 for this month

    • Darkatt's avatar
      Darkatt
      Honored Contributor
      2 months ago

      If you have a pano modem, look at the data usage by device. If you have a third party router, you still should be able to monitor your data usage through it, my RAXE300 can do so. 

      • jaw005's avatar
        jaw005
        New Contributor II
        30 days ago

        I do have a pano modem but cant see data usage by device on the app. do you know how?

    • Hoguelab's avatar
      Hoguelab
      New Contributor III
      2 months ago

      Contact Raquel at Cox.Help@cox.com.  She helped me when Cox dumped over 400GB into my data usage meter overnight.  Good luck!

       

      • soMos45's avatar
        soMos45
        New Contributor III
        30 days ago

        Yes they may help you solve the issue for 1 month and it goes back to the same problem weeks later ,,,,,plain and simple they just want you to get unlimited so they charge you more monthly 

    • soMos45's avatar
      soMos45
      New Contributor III
      2 months ago

      No I am still experiencing the same issues 

    • StephanieS's avatar
      StephanieS
      Moderator
      4 months ago

      Nessa  I'd be more than happy to look into this for you.  Please send me an email at cox.help@cox.com and include your full name and address.  Thanks!  

      • Hoguelab's avatar
        Hoguelab
        New Contributor III
        4 months ago

        How about looking into MY suspicious data usage spiked too?  

  • Chefdavid255's avatar
    Chefdavid255
    New Contributor II
    4 months ago

    I promise you. They do not accurately track the data and increase it on purpose. I am WAITING for that lawsuit to come to fruition with them. I am a brand new customer and I am telling you RN. I went to unlimited, because AINT NO WAY did we hit 1280 gigs of data within 20 days. I only surf online, My brother plays games, but works 12+ hours a day.

    I am telling you man. They do it so you pay more for unlimited. COX is KNOWN for scamming their customers.

    • soMos45's avatar
      soMos45
      New Contributor III
      2 months ago

      Same **bleep** is happening to my data for the last 6-12 months and  everytime I call cox it is always the same excuse . Sometimes they put me on hold for a long time and they never solve the  issue.  Everytime they try offering me unlimited data at a higher price 

      • Hoguelab's avatar
        Hoguelab
        New Contributor III
        2 months ago

        Send an email to Raquel at Cox.Help@cox.com ... she assisted me.  I never went unlimited.  I don't need to as long as Cox refrains from dumping GB's into my data usage meter that I didn't use.  

  • Darkatt's avatar
    Darkatt
    Honored Contributor
    4 months ago

    If you have a pano modem you can use the pano app. If you have a higher end router, you can turn on data monitoring in the router settings and it will monitor each device. 

    Info - Device streaming 4k video, can use as much as 8gb an hour.

    Some gaming systems if you reload the downloaded games, can use a WILD amount of data. 

    If you have an android phone and you have one drive installed, verify the settings, it COULD be backing up the entire phone daily and that can use over 100gb daily in some cases. (Another users in these forums, found that exact issue).

    If you have Amazon echo or dot, they can go into a loop listening and translating all conversations, and tv show you are watching and they can use as LOT of data. 

    If you have kids, make sure they didn't give the WiFi password to a neighbor, (also something another forum poster found out). 

    Hope some of this helps. 

    If not let me know, I can help provide more info. 

      • ChrisJ2's avatar
        ChrisJ2
        Moderator
        30 days ago

        I'm sorry for the issues with your data usage. Let me know how I can help and I will do my best. 

    • nadeeja's avatar
      nadeeja
      New Contributor II
      4 months ago

      Thanks for the reply. 

      The only thing that is different now that you mention it is, I have Hulu. I noticed it automatically switches to 4k streaming, and I can't switch it to a lower quality. Yesterday Cox app showed I used 120GB of data, which is extremely high. I watched Hulu for around 3 hours, and even at 8gb/hour, that doesn't add up. Other days I use ~50Gb data, and then get spikes to 80-90GB, but a couple months back, that number was closer to ~30GB. 

      I also reset the wifi password to see if that will cause any changes. I just got a notice from Cox again saying I used 75% of my data, and there's 15 days left in the billing cycle. I am honestly not sure what is causing this, because even the 4k streaming, it does not make sense.

      • Darkatt's avatar
        Darkatt
        Honored Contributor
        4 months ago

        Do you use the PANO modem? If so, the Pano App can actually break down which device is using how much data. 

        Hulu: 1.35 GB per hour to stream Hulu's catalogue in HD, 3.6 GB per hour to live stream, and 7.2 GB per hour for 4K content. 

        3 hours should only be 21.7gb of data at 4k, make sure however that you don't just turn off the tv, but that you end the hulu app and exit it properly. 

        Also, do you have security cameras? Blink/Ring? They can use an excessive amount of data if you have the resolution set to maximum, and you are saving the info to the cloud. I have BLINK, and do NOT have a subscription, I have the SYNC module with 256gb thumb drive and it can store an inordinate amount of data, so, no need for subscription eating my wallet, and all my videos are saved till I no longer want them, and delete them. 

        Other things to look for, turn off ONEDRIVE on ALL of your devices! Gaming systems can use a lot of data when playing online games. Games that are totally stored and played locally don't use nearly as much data. 

        If there is any more I can do to assist, let me know. I am a computer engineer with a specialty in analog and digital communications, and worked for Cox for over 16 years, 12 years of that in the Data Tier 2 department, so trust me, I KNOW data, and can definitely help you determine what's using it.