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Millions in Middle East Lose Internet

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the no-web-for-you dept.

Shipwack writes "Tens of millions of internet users across the Middle East and Asia have been left without access to the web after a technical fault cut millions of connections. The outage, which is being blamed on a fault in a single undersea cable, has severely restricted internet access in countries including India, Egypt and Saudi Arabia and left huge numbers of people struggling to get online. Observers say that the digital blackout first struck yesterday morning, with Egypt's communications ministry suggesting it was caused by a cut in a major internet pipeline linking it to Europe."

3 of 304 comments (clear)

  1. Unlikely by TFer_Atvar · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Cutting cables merely temporarily deprives your opponent of his ability to use that cable. Far better to tap the cable and monitor everything that's being sent across it without your opponent knowing that you're listening in. It also has the added bonus that cable traffic is not typically encrypted as radio transmissions are.

  2. Re:redundancy by Yvanhoe · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Would you pay 2 time the price to prevent a one-day outage once every year ? Military does. Consumers don't. Yet.

    --
    The Wise adapts himself to the world. The Fool adapts the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the Fool.
  3. Re:You know you're a geek... by Kvasio · · Score: 5, Insightful
    I believe that Middle East had their servers running. Taking into account the number of people affected, the title of news should be

    Internet split into two independent networks due to broken cable

    ... if not yet

    Europe and America cut from the internet

    ;-)