T-Mobile "Blocking" WiFi Tethering by Detecting & Denying Browser User Agent

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ochlo

Member
Feb 1, 2009
13
0
Seattle
T-Mobile "Blocking" WiFi Tethering by Detecting & Denying Browser User Agent

Just thought I'd share my experience. I was surfing on my G2 (running stock w/ the first OTA update installed, phone was not temp rooted) last night and I got this txt:
Free T-Mobile Msg: Phone Tethering & Wi-Fi Sharing access may be blocked unless you add a Phone Tethering & Wi-Fi Sharing plan available at my.t-mobile.com

I didn't think anything of it since I am on vacation and didn't even bring a laptop to tether with... until I got another text later that night:
Free T-Mobile Msg: Phone Tethering & Wi-Fi Sharing access has been blocked. Please add a Phone Tethering & Wi-Fi Sharing plan available at my.t-mobile.com

Sure enough, as soon as that was sent EVERY page I tried in the Dolphin browser I was using redirected to a generic "buy tethering for $10" placeholder! After a few moments I realized they were trying to detect what kind of browser I was using and seem to be blocking certain browsers from getting online. I was surfing on my G2 with Dolphin's "user agent" set to "desktop." I changed the setting to "Android" and have had no issues since. I am able to visit "full" sites and even stream embeded flash movies, java, etc.

Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
 

smirkis

Senior Member
Oct 8, 2010
1,820
611
San Diego, CA
so u changed dolphins user agent and wifi tethering continued to work without issues? ur last sentence just isn't very clear.

Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
 

x52x58

Member
Dec 2, 2008
27
2
He is saying that browsing on dolphin browser with user agent set to "desktop" was b being blocked. Changing back to "android" fixed it. He was not using wifi-tether at all.



Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
 

x52x58

Member
Dec 2, 2008
27
2
OP: what rom are you running? Are you stock? I have not had this problem while running Cyanogen 6.1rc

Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
 

ostinq

Senior Member
Sep 29, 2010
106
10
Arlington TX
I just changed my user agent to desktop in the stock browser. If they block me I will call 611 and raise hell, I will not be blocked from using my "unlimited" web plan. I am all stock no root.
 

franky1029

Senior Member
Aug 22, 2009
104
5
Why not? Do you work for tmobile? Not challenging you, just saying if this is the case where its now hardcoded into the network, then we should think about raising hell to corporate!

Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using Tapatalk
 

g_grey

Senior Member
Nov 6, 2010
125
4
retention is the shiz, too bad i recently started a new contract and my tenure did not move with me(9 years gone) now its like i just started with t-mo and retention probably won't do much for me. still waiting on my text to block tether/dolphin though
 

dhkr123

Senior Member
Nov 8, 2010
290
15
Time for tmobile users to build and install privoxy on your phones... it'll take care of this nonsense without requiring you to make any weird changes to your "tethered" computer.
 

ochlo

Member
Feb 1, 2009
13
0
Seattle
Update

I was using more bandwidth than I usually do on the desktop "User Agent" over Edge at the time (at least 100MB in an hour.) I just read another post on here which claims they send you a text after 100MB or something. After a couple of days I switched back to the desktop User Agent and have been using it since without any blocking. Seems to be certain criteria and possibly geographic location to get the texts and ban.
 

Android_Monsters

Senior Member
Feb 2, 2012
3,905
1,490
Los Angeles
I've been throttled.
My buddy and I were downloading roms to flash on customers phones using my hercules as a hot spot on some Acer laptop he had cause he didn't have internet that week.
It was just on this line, but pretty much made your phone unuseable.

I can't trick it long.

Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium
 
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