Using neural networks to classify Internet users

Traffic engineering and network management can greatly benefit from a reliable classification of Internet users. This paper evaluates the potential of different artificial neural network models for classifying Internet users based on their hourly traffic profile. The training of the neural networks and the evaluation of their performance rely on a previous classification of the Internet users obtained through cluster analysis. The results obtained for two data sets measured at the access network of a Portuguese ISP indicate that neural networks constitute a valuable tool for classifying Internet users.