It’s the End of the World as We Know It?

News this morning that a slice-cable has crippled Internet connections across the Middle East, Asia and parts of Africa raises a question that I have contemplated a number of times: will our reliance on technology one day result in the demise of civilization?

Already, reports of panic are coming from the regions where online activity has been reduced to less than half its’ normal status. Businesses are trying to maintain operations while hearing predictions that the severed underwater cable could take 1-2 weeks to repair. It’s a situation that many likely haven’t prepared for, yet so many will feel the impact of.

The disruption was allegedly caused by a boat used by a telecommunications company from the United Arab Emirates. Some nations are resorting to back-up satellite systems to stay on the web, others are forced to wait. Additional areas of concern are phone and television systems that have been lost as a result of the incident.

Which raises the question, how would a nation such as the United States be affected by the loss of a major telecommunications system? Whether that would be the loss of a major satellite tied to a cellular phone network or the simultaneous failure of major Internet servers nationwide, the idea is pretty scary.

We rely on cell phones to stay connected to literally everyone now. Many Americans no longer have landlines in their homes. Others don’t have traditional or cell phones at all, because they use their Internet connection for broadband phone service. What has occurred on the other side of the globe today should be an alarming event for anyone reading this (Internet user). What would happen to the stock market, financial institutions, healthcare systems or the company you work for if the Internet was down for 1-2 weeks? Imagine the impact on the economy! Then remember that we are virtually in a recession and think about how disastrous such an accident would be to the nation.

Every time I sign-up for another account online or I download a new type of software I think about how much further I am linking my life to a digital world. Some of my favorite hobbies (blogging & fantasy football) are online. My job is online. My connections to old friends and family are online. Quick answers to any questions I have are online. Would our society be able to handle a reversion to library research, paper letters and the slow speeds? Do enough of us have back-up plans?

If this story hasn’t made you concerned, then look no further than the University of California’s Institute on Global Conflict & Cooperation (www.igcc.ucsd.edu). Their staff highlights a few important quotes to consider when evaluating the role of technology in our lives and how serious the government views these systems in relation to our well-being:

Certain national infrastructures are so vital that their incapacity or destruction would have a debilitating impact on the defense or economic security of the United States. These critical infrastructures include telecommunications, electrical power systems, gas and oil storage and transportation, banking and finance, transportation, water supply systems, emergency services (including medical, police, fire, and rescue), and continuity of government.

Executive Order 13010, July 15, 1996

Threats to . . . critical infrastructures fall into two categories: physical threats to tangible property, . . . and threats of electronic, radio-frequency, or computer-based attacks on the information or communications components that control critical infrastructures ("cyber threats").

Executive Order 13010, July 15, 1996

How would a major loss of Internet connectivity impact you? What do you know about the country’s backup plan in case something like this would occur here?

SOURCES: 1. http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/01/31/dubai.outage/index.html

2. http://igcc.ucsd.edu/research/security/CIPbackground.php