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Occasionally we receive enquiries regarding seemingly high Inetkey costs, especially from students. Usually, the causes are fairly straight-forward and can be easily prevented. 

It’s very difficult to say what is causing or what the source of the traffic is without actually looking at your Inetkey logs. So, to start, before contacting us about your Inetkey usage, first look at your logs on http://www.sun.ac.za/useradm and go to the [View Internet Usage] tool and under “View Type” select “Source” and select USER to refresh the display. If you take note of all the IP addresses and see if they are in fact your devices, you will get a better idea of which device is generating the traffic and at which times.

Keep in mind that Stellenbosch University has numerous times been rated as having the fastest internet in South Africa. Current speed tests show that the download speed is 95.29 MB per second and an upload speed of 58.12 MB per second. Subsequently, you can easily run up a massive Inetkey bill within minutes.

The following are a few potential causes for high Inetkey usage:

• Windows 10 updates that cannot easily be switched off with traditional means. However, if the device is on the SU network and set up to receive updates from IT’s WSUS server, updates will be downloaded locally and not run via Inetkey.
• Updates stopping and restarting or not completing. Windows 10 1709 Creative Update is a little under 4Gb.
• Inetkey being left open on a device that is unattended overnight or during classes.
• Video streaming from sites not on the firewall exception list. Watching an HD streamed movie during the day and evening can generate 3Gb of data per hour.
• Using a laptop as a wifi hotspot for a cell phone to save on data costs.
• Using filesharing protocols like BitTorrent. Remember that uploads and downloads both generate traffic. If you use BitTorrent you are also seeding and will also pay for someone downloading your own files.
• Syncing files to DropBox.
• Weak passwords allowing neighbours and friends to share internet connections from adjacent rooms.
• Passwords being leaked to a friend or partners and then abused at a later stage.
• Viruses or malware included in BHO that spam and generate traffic. Often compromised e-mail accounts will cause high internet usage, because InetKey and email use the same password.
• Inetkey accounts being used on multiple devices.

If none of these seems to be causing your high Inetkey usage, you can ask Information Technology to investigate your internet usage (or issues). If you have a query send a complaint within 14 days to helpinfo@sun.ac.za. The cost of an enquiry is R200.00 per enquiry. If an error is found, the administrative fee will not be levied.

[Information supplied by David Wiles]

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Af en toe kry ons navrae oor skynbare hoë Inetkey-rekeninge, veral van studente. Die oorsake is gewoonlik voor-die-hand-liggend en kan maklik vermy word. 

Sonder om na jou internetrekords te kyk, is dit baie moeilik om vas te stel wat die rede of bron van ‘n hoë internetrekening is. Jou eerste stap is om, voordat jy ons kontak oor jou internetverbruik, eers na jou rekords te kyk by http://www.sun.ac.za/useradm deur die [View Internet Usage] opsie te gebruik en onder “View Type” “Source” te kies en dan USER om die inligting op te dateer. Let op die IP-adresse en gaan na dat dit wel jou eie toestelle is. Sodoende kan jy alreeds ʼn beter idee kry watter toestel die internetverkeer genereer en watter tye van die dag. 

Hou in gedagte dat Universiteit Stellenbosch keer-op-keer deur MyBroadband aangewys is as instansie met die vinnigste internet in Suid-Afrika. Huidige toetse wys dat die aflaaispoed 95.29 MB per sekonde is. Gevolglik kan jy baie vinnig, baie data aflaai sonder dat jy dit besef en binne minute jou internetrekening opjaag. 

Die volgende is maar ʼn paar moontlike oorsake vir hoë internetgebruik: 

• Windows 10 opdaterings wat nie maklik afgesit kan word nie. Indien jou rekenaar egter aan die US-netwerk verbind en opgestel is om opdaterings van IT se WSUS-bediener af te laai, sal die opdaterings plaaslik afgelaai word en die koste nie vanaf jou Inetkeyrekening gehef word nie.
• Opdaterings wat ophou, weer begin of nie volledig aflaai nie. Windows 10 1709 Creative Update is byvoorbeeld net-net onder 4Gb.
• Inetkey wat oopgelos word op ʼn toestel sonder toesig gedurende klasse of deur die nag.
• Videostroom-webwerwe wat nie op die vuurmuur se oopgestelde lys is nie. Deur ʼn HD-fliek te stroom gedurende die dag en aand kan 3Gb se data per uur verbruik.
• Gebruik van ʼn skootrekenaar as `n wifi hotspot vir ʼn selfoon met die doel om datakostes te spaar. 
• Gebruik van lêerdeel protokolle soos BitTorrent. Onthou dat beide op en aflaai verkeer genereer. As jy BitTorrent gebruik, seed jy ook jou eie lêers en betaal jy selfs as iemand anders jou lêers aflaai.
• Sinchronisasie van lêers na DropBox.
• Swak wagwoorde sodat bure en vriende in die nabye omgewing internet kan deel.
• Vriende of wederhelftes aan wie wagwoorde gegee word en dit later misbruik. 
• Virusse of malware wat gemorspos en meer verkeer genereer.  Dikwels veroorsaak blootgestelde e-posrekeninge hoë internetgebruik, omdat Inetkey en e-pos wagwoorde deel. 
• Inetkey-rekeninge wat op veelvuldige toestelle gebruik word. 

Indien geen van hierdie redes die oorsaak blyk te wees van jou hoë Inetkeyrekening nie, kan jy vir Informasietegnologie vra om jou internetgebruik na te gaan om vas te stel of daar iets onreëlmatig is. Stuur binne 14 dae ʼn versoek na helpinfo@sun.ac.za. Die koste per navraag is R200.00, maar indien daar `n fout gekry word, word hierdie fooi nie gehef nie. 

[Inligting verskaf deur David Wiles]

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