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Original poster

IS SOMEONE ELSE USING MY BROADBAND???!!!

30 replies

Dalrymps · 29/08/2008 12:26

I have this McAfee thing on my laptop. I have wireless broadband. Today it flashed up with a network overview and howed my computer then ANOTHER one called 'thomson' connected to my network . It asked if I wanted to mark it as a 'friend' or an 'intruder' so I marked it as an intruder. It said it would inform me when the 'intruder' connects.

Just now it flashed up saying the intruder has connected but I can't see any option to stop them connecting.

I think this is whats happening anyway, unless i'm being think and it means something else?

I'm if this is happening caus emy connection was really slow this morning and I had an email a while ago to say I had gone over my limit, I'm not paying for someone else to use my connection!!!

Help!

OP posts:
SoupDragon · 29/08/2008 12:28

You need to secure your wireless network.

SoupDragon · 29/08/2008 12:29

Someone with better Geek credentials will come along in a mo and tell you how to do this!

OneLieIn · 29/08/2008 12:30

Is your wireless secured? if so, it should be harder for them to use.
Are you with BT? The reason i ask is that one of their packages turns your home wifi into a hotspot for anyone to connect to.

jura · 29/08/2008 12:31

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

zippitippitoes · 29/08/2008 12:32

its not too hard just a case of going in clicking a few boxes and setting a password

OneLieIn · 29/08/2008 12:33

I can talk you through it too if you are not secured.

zippitippitoes · 29/08/2008 12:34

or they call it a string dont they

AMumInScotland · 29/08/2008 12:45

Oddly enough, my wireless connection also has something called "Thomson" on it, so it may not actually be another person using your connection. But I'm not that clear what it is, just that it has always appeared on the network...

zippitippitoes · 29/08/2008 12:49

thomson make routers

halogen · 29/08/2008 12:50

Could Thomson be the name of the router or your wireless card or something?

Original poster
Dalrymps · 29/08/2008 12:50

Hmm, don't know if it is secured or not.

Yes I am with BT.

I had to put in some kind of code off the back of the hub when I set it up in the first place and thought it was secure but now not sure.

AMumInScotland - interesting that you say yours has thomson on it too, maybe it's not someone else? Although I don't know what else it can mean as it says 'thomson' is another computer?!

OP posts:
halogen · 29/08/2008 12:51

Ah, zippi has the same thought as I do.

Original poster
Dalrymps · 29/08/2008 12:51

Don't know, maybe it is the card, is that in the hub? Why would it say it's a computer though

OP posts:
zippitippitoes · 29/08/2008 12:54

you mentioned mcafee as well which is always implying that things are attacks and intruders it doesnt seem to recognise any bona fide programmes even java updates it questions

zippitippitoes · 29/08/2008 12:58

ok i reckon thomson is downloading an update to your home hub

home hub is made by thomson

AMumInScotland · 29/08/2008 13:04

Ah, I've got the BT home hub too - so it would make sense if it's the hub getting an update.

Original poster
Dalrymps · 29/08/2008 13:04

Ok, I have a bt homehib, I checked the sticker on the back of it and in very small letters at the bottom it says 'thomson telecom' so maybe it's just that?

I'm still suspicious though, it's nevr come up before and i've been on the internet nearly a year

So you think it's my hub? On the network overview theres the internet, then a pic of the hub then branching off the hub pic are 2 computers...

OP posts:
AMumInScotland · 29/08/2008 13:06

The hub is another computer (sort of) so that would fit. It may not seem like a computer to you, since it doesn't have a screen or mouse or anything, but it is a little computer itself.

AMumInScotland · 29/08/2008 13:10

Has something else changed? - it could maybe just be an update to McAfee making it more twitchy than before.

Original poster
Dalrymps · 29/08/2008 13:12

Ok, why is there a pic of a hub and then 2 computers though? surely it would just say 'thomson' under the pic of the hub iykwim. The hilarious bit is that 5 years ago I worked in a call centre as technical help for bt broadband. Oh dear.

OP posts:
Original poster
Dalrymps · 29/08/2008 13:13

Nothing has changed as far as i'm aware, I usually just leave the laptop on and connected so I can pop on MN whenever I want. I restarted this morning as it was slow but it's been fine since then.

OP posts:
AMumInScotland · 29/08/2008 13:20

So, it says the network has the hub, then 2 PCs off the hub - what are the 2 PCs labelled? Is one of them the Thomson, and the other one your laptop?

AMumInScotland · 29/08/2008 13:20

I'm at work just now (lunchbreak!) so I can't look at mine to compare at the moment

Original poster
Dalrymps · 29/08/2008 13:34

Yes that right, it has internet which has a pic of a globe, then this is attached to a box that just has an ip address as it's name then that has 2 lines off it, one goes to a pic of a computer named 'my computer' and one goes to another computer named thomson.

OP posts:
AMumInScotland · 29/08/2008 13:43

I think that mine has the same, but as I say, I can't check it at the moment - but I reckon it probably means that the hub treats its own builtin computer as being another computer on the network - you can attach things to the hub directly I think, which would probably show on the diagram as being on "Thomson" - like backup drives, that sort of thing. So, I think it's ok. Though it doesn't explain why it's just started happening, if you've had it a year and not changed anything - but then again antivirus software is usually set to do regular updates so they may just have changed how it works. If no-one else has resolved this by then, I'll take a look this evening and see what mine looks like.