Tethering - Here's why I wouldn't do it...

[RW-1]

They cannot access your router, unless you left the default admin logon...

 

[aminaked]

Actually if you coat your Droid in tinfoil (approximately 3cm thick) then they can't even detect the amount of data either.

And you have to snip your USB cable with a pair of pliers

...to be extra careful.

 

[Hugh Jass]

Actually if you coat your Droid in tinfoil (approximately 3cm thick) then they can't even detect the amount of data either.

And you have to snip your USB cable with a pair of pliers

...to be extra careful.

That's a myth actually, scissors work just fine.

 

[Erron]

This doesn't make sense. They would jsut charge you for the data used if they can tell exactly how much you had used.

OH, also, his timeline doesn't add up.

Friday mornings they have store meetings every week, and when he came home Friday he asked me how my day was. I said how my school's internet was out, but I was able to use my Wired Tethering app (through Koush's 5.0.6.2 Cyanogen ROM) to give internet to my desktop to get some school work done.

So meeting friday morning..he had the school day friday using his tethering. So either vzon caught on and scheduled this meeting within minutes of his tethering or hes making something up.....Ill choose the latter.

 

[altovintner]

Back when I had a Storm 1, the Crackberry forums had all kinds of posts about tethering. I interpreted the various posts as saying that if you tether, you are in violation of the VZW terms of service. I also learned that most folks felt that if you tethered occasionally and, in particular, avoided streaming and other high bandwidth activities, VZW probably would not be interested in going after you. Of course, no guarantees.

My view is that as long as I tether to merely check a few emails and the like occasionally, I am ok. While VZW, cadres of attorneys, and some able learned participants in this forum would disagree with me, I feel I am not violating the terms and the spirit of the terms of service.

What VZW really wants is to get $30 per month from you for tethering. Period. In the past I have sometimes paid this fee to obtain the tethering rights legally for business purposes. One gripe that I have is that while VZW has a number of things you can change online, tethering is not one of them. You have to call customer service and go through the hassle of finally getting to someone who can help you and ask the service be established. You also have to call to turn it off. I wish they would make it easier to do this.

But, what really gets me is that if I tether and use 250mb in a month to check emails here and there, how does VZW feel if I go through 1gb in a month for sites like tv.com on my Droid? The former ostensibly a violation and the latter within the rules.

All in all, I say that if you do choose to tether, no matter how little you use, you are at risk. Perhaps a small risk, but a risk nevertheless. Just how they can find this out is beyond me. I seriously doubt they can get anything out of my router that proves anything. They would have to look at daily/monthly use rates attempt to identify statistical outliers to suspect anything. For those of you who would tether and stream like there is no tomorrow, I say you are at high risk.

Regards,

 

[aminaked]

Actually if you coat your Droid in tinfoil (approximately 3cm thick) then they can't even detect the amount of data either.

And you have to snip your USB cable with a pair of pliers

...to be extra careful.

That's a myth actually, scissors work just fine.

Superglue in the droid's USB port for extra protection.

 

[Varking]

It may have to do with your trend of data usage as well. I can confirm that I have been over the 5gb Data Cap on tethering alone for well over five straight months on the Droid, but even before that, a full year on my BlackBerry and not once have I ever been hit with an extra fee. Just tethering. I use a lot more data then that on a monthly basis as a whole.

 

[Vulcan1600]

I spent 2-1/2 years with VZW in a call center and was a Senior Rep. I did not go to Tech Support because I didn't want to lose seniority when it came time to pick our shifts. By the time I left a year ago, they basically had me cross trained to do what a tech support person could do, but not quite all the resources they had. Having said that.

1. There is no 5GB data limit with your Droid.
2. The Employee Accounts were never monitored.
3. I, nor anyone I worked with or still work for VZW have heard or seen an instance where someone got busted for tethering either with PDANet or WiFi tether.
4. I think the O.P. was given a line of crap.
5. If you do tether, do so wisely and you'll be ok

 

[nateccnn]

If you really believe that you could be in for a rude awakening. They can access your router at any time and they can see exactly what each device is doing.

Right. The cable company can look past my router password and violate all the rules of NAT, to view my routers logs (that expire every 2 days). Sorry dude, it cant be done.

You obviously don't work in data security. Those expired logs are still there for one thing. Unless you wipe your drive every two days with data wipe software package. But you are kind of right since the NAT tables are on the inside of the network, if you have security set up right they would have to log into your PC to access them. Anything they see on the router side will report an ip adress of the router so unless my Droid is broadcasting the network translation from Barancle, Vz has no idea I have a PC onnected to it wirelessly. Just keep in mind that without a firewall, they can get in and see the NAT talbles. How's your firewall? All the ports blocked? Do you game? If so...they can get in.

Also...When I bought my Droid I asked the sales rep about tethering and she told me I would have to download an app from the market but that Vz does not support or condone it. I asked if they forbid it and she told me that if I have the right package they would never know or care to know. I went with unlimitewd data package so I asked about the 5 mb per month limit mentioned on many websites and she said it was bull feces. All this time I was drilling her I was expecting to choke her up but saying...OK lets see it in writing. So she brought the contract out and we read it together. Nothin in there that gives them authority to charge me extra if I go over any certian limit of data. Period. Took about an hour to get through the whole document but I was satisfied that my lmitied tethering was not going to violate any terms of my service contract. About the only thing they can get me for is in stalling non-authorized applicaitons. Anything that comes from the market would be tough to prove is an un-authorized applicaiton. Unless they specify in my contract that I can't use Barnacle...which they did not. So I say to Vz...sue me.

I laughed at the OP because he makes it sound like the Vz stores just found out about rooting. My sales rep told me where to get info on rooting. And she made me promise to put it back to stock if it needs work at a store. They know about it, folks. They don't support it. They don't condone it. And if it breaks your phone it voids your warranty. And that's about all I see that they can do to you.

My adivce is worth exactly what I charged you for it.

Nate

 

[nateccnn]

Rooting isnt required to tether I thought?

If the phone is set up to allow another computer to share it's internet it releys on some level of routing and NAT. The computer has to have a different iP from the phone. Otherwise the phone won't know where to send the packets.

EDIT: Whoops...I thoguth that said ROUTING is not required.

NAte

 

[Backnblack]

I went with unlimitewd data package......

You did this as this is the Only package you can get with a Droid.

 

[rkeller62]

Guess I will add my 3 cents:

1) The ETF is to protect vzw from you canceling early. Legally I don't think they can charge it if they terminate you.

2) If you root you void your phone warranty, not your TOS. They have every right to refuse to service your phone, but I don't think they have any grounds to terminate your contract.

3) they do not keep, or at least can't use, detailed usage logs. When I had my xv6700 I decided to turn off my data plan to save money. Next bill they hit me with $150 dollars in data charges. When I called customer service they told me they could only tell me how much usage I had on a daily basis, not what the usage was. Turned out I had used 100 mb of data the day I called and turned data off, but they made the turn-off retroactive to the beginning of the day. Needless to say I got a $150 credit for that one.

 

[JCo352]

I don't tether really at all, because the 3G at my house is terrible, so I'm always connected to wifi at the house. But as far as rooting and having to take my phone in if something goes wrong(Assuming it's FUBAR). You can just call me unethical, because I will "lose" my phone.

 

[nateccnn]

I went with unlimitewd data package......

You did this as this is the Only package you can get with a Droid.

Yup...you're right. I used the wrong terminology. I meant to say I got the UNLIMITED EVERY GAWD DOHM THING package. I have the Mobile Broadband Connect and pay something like 139 bucks per month to keep them off my hairy back.

I think they are kissing my ass right now at the annual board memebers convention. I used like 39 kilobytes so far this month and have only hooked up to tether just to test the settings. LOL

I am going on the road next week and plan to use the service I have paid for though. Watch out Verizon...you may want to check out your LOCs and be sure you have the credit to cover my ass. LOL

Nate

 

[christim]

Rooting isnt required to tether I thought?

There is a market app that lets you tether via usb for and you do not need to be rooted. Look for PdaNet.

To wifi tether you do indeed need to be rooted.