Lights out, rebels: it looks like the Syrian government just blacked out almost the entire country’s access to the web. This is cyber warfare.
Internet-monitoring firm Renesys says “77 networks experienced an outage in Syria starting at 10:26 UTC on November 29. This represents 92% of the routed networks in the country.” That’s a big chunk of the country’s infrastructure that just went dark. Danger Room spoke to an activist working with Syria’s rebel forces who confirms the outage.
A smaller outage could be chalked up to an errant mortar shell, but 92% of the entire country? Only the Syrian regime has the power to create that kind of lockout at will. [Twitter via Renesys via Danger Room]
Update: ABC News reports phone service is severed too.
I'm going the be the first to say; this is bullshit. No matter what their motives, no government should be able to just 'switch off' their populations access to the Internet. What about the part of the populace that aren't rebels? And phones too?? That should be some human rights violations or something. If this doesn't work can they just shut down their own water supply? Maybe they should just nuke their little part of the world while they're there & render the whole area unlivable for a thousand years, just in case.
Good work Syria
human rights violations aren't exactly the syrian regimes primary concern right now. they're a bit more concerned with massacring loads of their own citizens. cutting off the internet probably just means they're about to do something truly terrible and dont want news of it getting out.
I am going to be the second to say, using and owning a mobile phone and internet is not a right, it is a privelidge. Then you go to say having no access to telecommunications is similar to being nuked. I do not know about you, but last time I left my phone at home I didn't die due to radiation or massive explosion. When you live in a country which is under dictatorship, you have no rights.
Access to the Internet is now considered a basic human right. Has been for several years.
It's a pretty big human right...
Being denied access to the font of all human knowledge (aggrandising a tad) seems like a pretty big deal to me
Wasn't it anonymous saying just the other week that any country threatening to cut off a populations internet would be targeted by them?
what are they going to do, throw water bombs at them?
They'll attack through the Interne- wait. No. Never mind.
People please don't believe the media... common I lived there for 8 years now that am here I got cousins who still lives there and know whats really happening.. Yes the government isn't first class.. but which one is?... "freedom fighters" or shall i say qayda is training 13-14 year old kids how to cut heads off.. yep thats how f###edup it is down there.. keep in mind all the Christian families the government is keeping safe.. once the rebels take control all these families woman will be rapid kids will be hostages and men killed..I AM AN IRAQI Christian and i seen this happen to my country and people thanks god am here now. don't want to see more blood and people suffer. leave syria alone
Wasn't access to the internet deemed a human right by the U.N. a little while ago? (Not that Syria would care what the U.N. thinks, but still...)
Someone didn't read the sign, "Dial before you dig" or maybe it says "Dial before you detonate".
Meanwhile my internet disconnected while trying to post this, I think I'll call the U.N.