Cellular System Services

I have the exact same issue... and a quick web search shows we aren't the only ones. I have settings set to limit cellular as much as possible, inlcuding 'no cellular' for app store. My strong suspicion is that the new MPTCP feature overides user preferences for system services, routing over cellular. I'm thinking app updates are the trigger for "iTunes accounts" and regardless of not allowing cellular, if it is a system service, MPTCP overides.

Can anyone weigh in on my theory? Can anybody from Apple verify?

Same issue here, there are many unknown usage like security services (what the heck is this?), exchange (no mail/calendar sync activities), itunes account, siri (I don't even use siri yet), etc that consumes cellular bandwidth. We need explanation for this

Yes, the same thing is happening to me after iOS7 "Upgrade". Its costing me $Money$. Already blew my data plan two days after it started!

DeBon wrote:

Yes, the same thing is happening to me after iOS7 "Upgrade". Its costing me $Money$. Already blew my data plan two days after it started!

Me too. I bought some albums with my iPhone while on WiFi, but some of the songs downloaded on LTE. The data showed up under Settings->System Services->iTunes Accounts.

There's 3 places to turn off the data:

Settings->Cellular: Appstore

Settings->Cellular: iTunes

Settings->iTunes & App Store: Use Cellular Data

AT&T were really nice and gave me credit for the data overage.

Seems that the easiest way to avoid this is to stop buying stuff from iTunes.

turning the data off doesn't work... it seems, and this is totally a theory, that ios7 handles some itunes data as system data and bypasses one's data preferences.

That said, I reset my network preferences and all seems well. granted, I don't use iTunes other than for home sharing, so my scenario was odd to begin with. I also have not re-connected to my home share so that may also be why the data black hole hasn't come back.

Seriously Apple, you going to explain this or what?

I myself is struggling with high data usage. Maximum of my data has gone exchange account ( in system services) and I do not know how to deactivate it.

I do not have any exchange e mail account, I just use yahoo and hotmail

Has somebody got any ideas to deactivate this exchange account

I am also having the same issue. How do i restrict it.

This dint not happen earlier or i might have not looked in to it in earlier version.

Currently i have upgraded to Latest version of IOS.

Apple please respond ASAP.

Settings> mail contacts calendars > click on your email address/s turn off contacts, reminders, calendars (mainly calendars)

This should definitely help with the data use for exchange.

Any answers to this? Last few months I keep getting data alerts that I'm coming close with my plan and I can't see how I can use more then 2GB a month! It's mainly in these system services! I reset my stats the start of this month to see what's going on and I get the following:

Current Period: 2.0GB

Music and App store is turned off for cellular and also in the iTunes & App Store settings

System Services: 754MB

- iTunes Accounts 660MB

WHAT IS MY ITUNES ACCOUNT DOING???

I do have Match for iTunes but this shouldn't be happening...

I think iTunes Accounts is an embarrassing misnomer that probably was named that way years ago.

It's true nature is a genuine "mystery of the web" but I think it refers to everything in “Mail, Contacts, Calendars” that is NOT Exchange Accounts and doesn’t have an entry on the Cellular menu. On my phone that includes my iCloud Contacts, Reminders, Safari settings, Notes, Passbook, and Keychain. Like “Exchange Accounts” these can’t be set to avoid use of cellular data, you can only tweak data use in “Fetch New Data”.

Returning to this old post -- because after weeks of searches I'm no closer to an answer. This is a genuine mystery -- and this one thread is the only place on the web where there's a semi-plausible theory for what "iTunes Accounts" really is. (seem in Apple's System Services submenu in the Cellular Data usage part of iOS 7)

We all assume "iTunes" is a misnomer, but we really don't know. I've asked the geekiest geek I know for help...

Hi All..

I had this problem too - "iTunes account" under "System Services" using on average 100MB of cellular data per day. I suspect it's the automatic app updates - even when use cellular data is turned off for "iTunes & App Store" AND Automatic Downloads / Updates are turned off..

Regardless of what is causing it, the easiest workaround I've found so far is to simply sign out of iTunes after I'm done downloading/updating apps (over WiFi). Settings/iTunes & App Store then select your Apple ID and signout. Next time you use the appstore to download something you'll need to login again and logout when done. But by doing this for the last month, my cellular data usage for "iTunes account" has gone down substantially to about 5MB for the entire month!

I'm hoping the next update from Apple will fix this bug, but until then, this isn't too painful a workaround..

Hope it helps someone else too!

Same problem but mine started with iOS 8 and it's not on "iTunes Accounts", my problem is on "Software Updates" under "System Services"

Honestly Apple we need a solution ASAP for this bug it's blowing our data plans

The same exact thing is happening with me also!!
Every month, iTunes Accounts in System Services is consuming over 600-700MB. I have been following this every month by keeping a track over it and tried every possible thing to reduce it, but couldn't succeed.

Apple really needs to work this out and lead us with a solution. Buying such an expensive phone and then again suffering because of these stupid stuff is really annoying and costing a fortune every month.

APPLE : PLEASE ON AN NECESSARY AND AN URGENT NOTE GET THIS THING FIGURED OUT AND HELP US AS ALOT MANY PEOPLE ARE FACING THE EXACT SAME THING..PLEASE!