The totally off-topic thread

[Denali]

Sometime in January someone somewhere gained access to our modem, and they've been powering through our alloted data ever since, to the tune of 5-8GB per day.
I did not become aware of it until last month, and had no warning or correspondence from our ISP.
They can't even track the traffic that was used, or where it went. They don't do that stuff unless they are issued with a warrant, which I think is a bit dicey.
At least I have registered the issue, so if Mr Plod comes knocking on my door I have that in my back pocket.
Changed modem password, wifi network ID and password this morning, after a little but of effort and we're back to a more normal 0.28GB.
Since the wife is visiting family in Mandurah and I've been at work for a few hours I think I may have managed to block the freeloaders out.

You should change your wifi name to something like, My Neighbours Suck or All These GBs and None For You!

 

[JessicaTam]

Does that mean a new job?

Same employer, new job east of the city.

So I can get back into the MEL AFF social scene a bit more often.

 

[serfty]

Same employer, new job east of the city.

So I can back into the MEL AFF social scene a bit more often.

Wot? SXE?

 

[JessicaTam]

Wot? SXE?

Thereabouts. Only found out this arvo, hence why I didn't say anything earlier.

 

[GarrettM]

You should change your wifi name to something like, My Neighbours Suck or All These GBs and None For You!

I don't think the culprits were local. The modem was fairly insecure and could have been accessed remotely from most anywhere.
Which is my bad.

 

[serfty]

I don't think the culprits were local. The modem was fairly insecure and could have been accessed remotely from most anywhere.
Which is my bad.

To drain the GB as you describe it must have been local to have been worthwhile for the culprits.

 

[PLANT]

Hang on with the budget does that mean I can only carry $10k between countries instead of more like before the budget announcment?

 

[Quickstatus]

Sometime in January someone somewhere gained access to our modem, and they've been powering through our alloted data ever since, to the tune of 5-8GB per day.
I did not become aware of it until last month, and had no warning or correspondence from our ISP.
They can't even track the traffic that was used, or where it went. They don't do that stuff unless they are issued with a warrant, which I think is a bit dicey.
At least I have registered the issue, so if Mr Plod comes knocking on my door I have that in my back pocket.
Changed modem password, wifi network ID and password this morning, after a little but of effort and we're back to a more normal 0.28GB.
Since the wife is visiting family in Mandurah and I've been at work for a few hours I think I may have managed to block the freeloaders out.

1) Modem alone is not enough. Presumably you have Modem and Router

2) Use WPA2 encryption. WEP is not recommended

3) Use long password with Capital letters and symbols

4) Use a different SSID than the default SSID and make it inconspicuous. SSID = the name of the wifi. So don't use a common SSID. Some routers allow you the hide the SSID. Note that the encryption is based on the SSID plus password.

5) Add additional security using MAC address filtering in the router. All devices (phones, tablets, laptops and computers) which access the internet via wifi or wired has a unique MAC address). You can set your router to allow a list of MAC addresses (and by definition disallow any MAC addresses not in the allowed list). New devices can only access the network if its MAC address is manually added to the allowed list.


6) Wifi access point should be ideally after the modem and router. Modem connects to router via ethernet. Router connects to wifi access point via ethernet cable. Then devices connect to wifi access point. (Unless yours is a modem router wifi access point combo).

7)Also change the username and password of your modem.

8)Then there is enterprise WPA2 where each user has their own username and password, and 802.1x authentication.

Most people can advance their security by doing number 4,5,6,7

 

[love_the_life]

Wot? SXE?

Same employer, new job east of the city.

So I can back into the MEL AFF social scene a bit more often.

Congratulations JT.
That wasn’t too far from where I grew up. Family came from Gippsland area.

 

[Pushka]

ATMs. It seems like every time I use an ATM it’s been changed. And from bank to bank they all look completely different. So how the heck are we supposed to be ‘vigilant’ about things like hidden cameras when we don’t even know what the original product should look like.

Caught a possum last night. Seems they like persimmons. We’ve been using apples. But persimmons it is. Will release late tonight.

 

[Bindibuys]

Our possums like kiwi fruit, water melon and pomegranate.

 

[Denali]

Hang on with the budget does that mean I can only carry $10k between countries instead of more like before the budget announcment?

I thought we werent going to be stopped from paying $10K+ for cash jobs.

Dad in laws funeral was $10K+ and we paid cash. Thats what a lot of older European migrants do, theyre not dodgy.

 

[Pushka]

I thought we werent going to be stopped from paying $10K+ for cash jobs.

Dad in laws funeral was $10K+ and we paid cash. Thats what a lot of older European migrants do, theyre not dodgy.

It can avoid GST though. Funerals are rather expensive aren’t they. I don’t want that much spent on me. It’s easy enough to overcome though. I was offered a discount for cash payment the other week. Friends of ours in the retail industry seemed to make the cash economy work extremely well for them. I suspect that has changed now with payWave and credit card incentives for buyers. But they’ve already made the wealth now. Whereas we in our business have every transaction recorded as a payment. I know they didn’t.

 

[Denali]

.... Funerals are rather expensive aren’t they......

$10+K and they already owned their plot and didnt include the granite headstone ect afterwards. Neither hubby or I plan on having a grave site.

 

[Pushka]

$10+K and they already owned their plot and didnt include the granite headstone ect afterwards. Neither hubby or I plan on having a grave site.

Our family hasn’t had plots for years. My grandmother was the last one and she passed away thirty years ago. I just prefer to remember lost ones in my mind. Grandmother and Grandfather were buried together. He was a WWI service man and who worked in the War Graves in Villers Bretonneux after the War repatriating the deceased. He died in his late forties as his heart was impacted by trench warfare. So he’s been gone a very long time, I never met him. His headstone is marked with his war service but he was not buried in the military area as he wanted his wife (grandmother) to be buried with him later. Now, the bloody cemetery has put a sign on his grave stating that it will be reused as the lease has run out. How damn ironic. He worked on the War Graves Commission in the 1900’s and now our damn people here want to resettle his grave. Of course we could pay the lease, but it amounts to thousands of dollars. I’ve written to our state government and I understand that they have a stay in place but not sure for how long. Lest we Forget, yeah, only when it gets the headlines.

 

[love_the_life]

Our family hasn’t had plots for years. My grandmother was the last one and she passed away thirty years ago. I just prefer to remember lost ones in my mind. Grandmother and Grandfather were buried together. He was a WWI service man and who worked in the War Graves in Villers Bretonneux after the War repatriating the deceased. He died in his late forties as his heart was impacted by trench warfare. So he’s been gone a very long time, I never met him. His headstone is marked with his war service but he was not buried in the military area as he wanted his wife (grandmother) to be buried with him later. Now, the bloody cemetery has put a sign on his grave stating that it will be reused as the lease has run out. How damn ironic. He worked on the War Graves Commission in the 1900’s and now our damn people here want to resettle his grave. Of course we could pay the lease, but it amounts to thousands of dollars. I’ve written to our state government and I understand that they have a stay in place but not sure for how long. Lest we Forget, yeah, only when it gets the headlines.

Are they still going ahead with that plan? I thought that there had been a big enough outcry for them to see that it was a very bad idea and incredibly disrespectful.
Can the family rebuy the lease? That's what we had to do for MrLtL's mother at Springvale - it's in perpetuity now.

 

[Pushka]

Are they still going ahead with that plan? I thought that there had been a big enough outcry for them to see that it was a very bad idea and incredibly disrespectful.
Can the family rebuy the lease? That's what we had to do for MrLtL's mother at Springvale - it's in perpetuity now.

We can buy the lease but it’s thousands of dollars. We can’t actually buy the plot outright. My brother has just retired and pretty sure his wife wouldn’t want to share the cost. But he is the only grandchild who knew him. The plan - it is on hold but things change in the political world. I might have another go with the newly minted Vets Affairs Minister here in SA.

 

[VPS]

We have the same issue with grandparents graves in Centennial park due to expire this year. We're going to take the gravestones and put them somewhere else and then they just dig up the graves and put them lower and put someone on top of them. I think it was several thousand dollars to have it in perpetuity and none of us have the money to do it

 

[Pushka]

We have the same issue with grandparents graves in Centennial park due to expire this year. We're going to take the gravestones and put them somewhere else and then they just dig up the graves and put them lower and put someone on top of them. I think it was several thousand dollars to have it in perpetuity and none of us have the money to do it

Yes, ours is in Centennial Park too. Exactly the same situation although his headstone does have his Batallion etc listed and the rising sun emblem. But because it isn’t in the specific war veterans section they are being difficult. Yet their instructions say something along the lines ‘War Service acknowledged at time of internment’. His obviously was.

 

[JohnK]

It can avoid GST though. Funerals are rather expensive aren’t they. I don’t want that much spent on me.

I think a small plot in Sydney's Rookwood Cemetery is close to $20,000. Not sure if you need to pay more for a plot with unexpected deaths.