Smarty SIM causing security concerns on websites?

I have read through old threads, and the constantly changing IP addresses on Smarty SIMs seems to be a known issue. I am finding that some sites require me to enter reCaptcha tests including Google, and ebay. Today was the first time I was blocked by a website, which was FootLocker. I had a bad experience in the past using a VPN where logging into certain websites seemed to result in my user accounts being raised as a security issue or being temporarily blocked, and I don't want the same thing to happen again.

Is the dynamic IP address system of Smarty more or less the same to a website as a VPN? Perhaps it associates the changing IP addresses with other IP addresses that have been used with blacklisted accounts in its records?

I am using a Smarty SIM in a Huawei B535 router with my PC and other devices at home, and the IP address can change two or three times in a minute.

Edited by Franco (Sat 24-Sep-22 13:36:57)

Just to add to this. I have checked about 6 IP addresses that I have been allocated in the last few days on an IP address blacklist check and they all come up as bad with at least two companies. These are BARRACUDA and Spamhaus ZEN.

I don't know what this means exactly, but I suspect the IP address range is also blacklisted with ebay, which has not blocked my account but has stopped sending me promotional listing offers.

What APN is set on your router?

Those blocklists are for email, so it shouldn't be a concern for your use case. I would absolutely expect email sent from any mobile IP address to be rejected or delivered to the Spam folder.

(Note that I'm talking about SMTP server/MTA submission, not a user/UA accessing webmail. Unless you're running a mail server at home, don't worry.)

I have the same issue on my phone on my Three contract SIM (I didn't know what APN I was on, but checked and it's "three.co.uk"). Regularly, but not always, I get the reCaptcha test ("click on all the bicycles" etc) on Google when searching for something.

This is a different issue to spam blacklists - which are not relevant here as you presumably aren't running a mail server on your Three account. It's one of the reasons I'm a bit unimpressed with Three and will probably move on when my contract expires - if all I'm doing is something as innocuous as searching Google while out and about, I shouldn't be being told I'm a security threat.

The APN is "3internet". I read through two threads on these forums and it didn't look like anyone was able to resolve the issue with the IP address changing.

I am worried with ebay. I had a lot of trouble when I used a VPN in the past. My concern is that if someone else has used a banned account on one of these constantly changing IP addresses then they will associate me with the banned account. That seems to be what happens with VPNs.

It's 3's "new" cloud core network that's causing the issue and the way in which it requests data to the outside world.

Before they changed it a few years ago the IP address that you would come from would remain fairly static for your session and would only likely change if your session got dropped (reboot phone, airline mode, lose reception through tunnel and pick up again on other side etc).

However, from what I can deduce under the new network setup the IP address changes very frequently, and so throws some sites off balance as they see load of different IPs trying to access at once from the same session.

Hence the captcha requests for Google and very often I get stuck behind the Google sorry page where it thinks you are a robot and you have to spend forever clicking the pictures of the traffic lights, boats, buses etc.

See it for yourself here: https://www.ripe.net/ - just ctrl+F5 (hard refresh) this page every few minutes and you will see a different IP. I have no idea why 3 have decided to have such a "hot" IP system.

In reply to a post by Franco:

The APN is "3internet"

That APN doesn't do anything on Smarty. If you need an unchanged, non-NAT IP address (modulo changing cells, etc.), you need a Three contract.

All UK networks use CGNAT, so you risk getting a "suspicious" IP address, due to the small pool of external addresses. However, Three's aggressive load balancing can confuse some badly designed sites.

Only 3internet will give you a "real" IP address, from a much larger pool, so your risk is much lower.

Edited by richi (Mon 26-Sep-22 08:27:02)

Thanks guys. I'll probably go back to a broadband line. I think a Three contract is a risk given what I've experienced and it is more expensive in any case. I managed to get Smary when it was 100GB for £12 a month. I'm pretty sure ebay got suspicious of my account so I have no choice but to find an alternative.

I'm also fed up of clicking on Chimneys and Zebra crossings. I've done enough of that to last a lifetime.

Haha I ended up using Bing in anger a few occasions as I just got sick of clicking on all of the crosswalks, bridges and bicycles and it just glitching out and asking me to complete yet another round.

It's definitely something with the way they have set up their network, I have seen this on my phone itself, on my laptop using the phone wifi hotspot, on my friend's iphone (who is on 3).