Slashdot Mirror
O2's UK Network Crash Hits Offender Monitoring System
judgecorp writes "Mobile operator O2's network crashed on Wednesday and Thursday of this week. In the aftermath it has emerged how other services rely on mobile networks. Law enforcement agencies were unable to track some convicted criminals wearing electronic tags, and the crash also disabled parts of London's network of 'Boris Bikes' — public hire bikes."
We also had a crash in France recently (Orange was down for a whole day), and it made little to no difference on anyone's life -- except control freaks who had to know where you were all the time, and those in need of emergency services.
...I actually had to meet my friends face to face and use full sentences
Convicted Criminals on Boris Bikes . . . unable to be tracked!
We'll see their true intent during the Olympics, when the Crown Jewels or something like that are five-fingered.
Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
it has emerged how other services rely on mobile networks
In times when people were able to plan ahead instead of having to confirm each and every date and action (of course by cellphone) immediately before execution one would have said 'gave evidence of how other services rely on mobile networks'.
CC.
TaijiQuan (Huang, 5 loosenings)
It's a good thing criminals are all locked up until they go straight !! Imagine the chaos, anarchy, if the penal system turned them out the same as they went, or made them worse !! Imagine !!
Obviously a test for when the chavs go rioting, the moon cultists revolt, or there's a bank run or something.
If anyone thinks this was down to technical fault I've got a bridge for sale.
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
Now we're finally hearing of the important consequences of O2's network being down. I couldn't help but be irritated at how this was being reported in the news. Hysterical accounts of how Joe. Q. Public couldn't use their mobile. One news paper even found it news worthy to report that someone on twitter said they missed a phone call from their daughter! Wow, that really sounds like a living nightmare. Of course, there is also the inevitable talk of compensation... SPOILER: most people use their phones for inconsequential, inane yacking. For most people mobiles are a convenient toy they can live without. I hope it was just the news stirring things up and that we haven't all been reduced to being whiny cry babies. My mobile was affected (GiffGaff) but somehow I managed to deal with it and get on with life.
My sympathy is entirely with the engineers who would have certainly been under immense pressure to get this fixed ASAP, and to also provide a totally useless "ETA to resolution". Urgh, I've been there :(
Why were these 'critical' systems not set to automatically roam to another network if their 'home' network becomes unavailable?
That's the funniest thing I've read all week.
Did anyone else find it hilarious that they're British and their recommendation to anyone still having problem is basically "Hello, IT. Have you tried turning it off and then back on again?"
Replacing the battery in my iPhone. Started with a working phone. Took it to bits, new battery, put it back together, turned it on. NO SIGNAL!!!! Freaked. Thanks O2, that was the last straw. I've changed provider now.
RBS systems down for over a month. G4S needing the military to provide Oylimpic security coverage. And now O2 entire netowrk goes down for 24 hours.
More and more we are seeing the end results of private sector incompetence. Large companies, run by feckless playboys and professional bullshitters, cutting costs at every turn, slowly crumbling from the inside out.
It's like an accelerated private sector version of the collapse of the Soviet Union, and it is happening across the IT/service economy at an accelerating pace. How long before a major news network, private hospital, transport network, or airline goes belly up entirely and needs the public to step in any bail it out once again?
Forget "Too Big to Fail". It appears these companies are "Too Big to Succeed". I don't see why they should be given special privileges and handouts anymore, or in particular why any significant portion of our societies infrastructure must be placed in their care.
These companies should either be nationalised, or else wound up.
May the Maths Be with you!
Well before /. it is black boxes being installed on lines and emergency secret powers exercised by the UK gov under anti terrorism legislation so phone calls can be monitored to prevent terrorism at the Olympics. British Telecom owns the lines and the government controls communication devices.
Please do not be fooled because this is being done underhandedly to spy on P2P traffic so under emergency anti-terrorism powers this is where we have ended up despite legal wranglings. The law states, that the British Government can do anything they like if on the qualifying legal basis "If is deemed (Within the Public's best Interests)".
In layman terms legally the government can do anything they like and decide your future as long as it is "" (within your best interests).
That is why people protest. I am sure another slashdot reader or journalist can give extra credit to this by adding citations as truly I do not have the time!
Yours as always,
NSN
All cows eat grass!
I agree, but the solution of
"These companies should either be nationalised, or else wound up."
Seems to be working within a dualistic communism vs capitalism way of looking at life.
How's about using the market to get results and then if that's not possible (but I think there always is, just need to work hard at finding a way to allow competition within a big system), then fall back to the state systems
(that are inefficient because they don't have evolution-like free market economics oiling the wheels)
A blog I run for the wealth