How do we deal with an internet blackout?

[misterbigg]

It's entirely plausible to expect Internet access in a certain geographic region to be unavailable for days, possibly weeks, in the event of temporary anarchy. Everyone here understands how regulation and economic forces can devastate a society, sending it back significantly in terms of technology and standard of living.

I think the best way to deal with this is to have a small amount invested in physical precious metals, like one ounce gold and silver rounds. These are more readily spent if there's no electricity and the local currency collapses.

[1714174438]

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[1714174438]

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[Herodes]

It's entirely plausible to expect Internet access in a certain geographic region to be unavailable for days, possibly weeks, in the event of temporary anarchy. Everyone here understands how regulation and economic forces can devastate a society, sending it back significantly in terms of technology and standard of living.

I think the best way to deal with this is to have a small amount invested in physical precious metals, like one ounce gold and silver rounds. These are more readily spent if there's no electricity and the local currency collapses.

Yes, and for those having the resources, perhaps investing in a backup of sorts (sattelite connection / ham radio connection) and solar panels / wind mills, could be an idea?

[Trader Steve]

It's entirely plausible to expect Internet access in a certain geographic region to be unavailable for days, possibly weeks, in the event of temporary anarchy. Everyone here understands how regulation and economic forces can devastate a society, sending it back significantly in terms of technology and standard of living.

I think the best way to deal with this is to have a small amount invested in physical precious metals, like one ounce gold and silver rounds. These are more readily spent if there's no electricity and the local currency collapses.

Yes, and for those having the resources, perhaps investing in a backup of sorts (sattelite connection / ham radio connection) and solar panels / wind mills, could be an idea?

Agreed. You would possess valuable assets that, in turn, make you valuable to your local community. This is one more asset/service you can offer in trade to help sustain yourself.

[Trader Steve]

Here's  a relevant article to this discussion:

Syria's Internet Outage and the Future of Information Warfare
http://www.activistpost.com/2012/12/syrias-internet-outage-and-future-of.html

[miscreanity]

It's entirely plausible to expect Internet access in a certain geographic region to be unavailable for days, possibly weeks, in the event of temporary anarchy. Everyone here understands how regulation and economic forces can devastate a society, sending it back significantly in terms of technology and standard of living.

I think the best way to deal with this is to have a small amount invested in physical precious metals, like one ounce gold and silver rounds. These are more readily spent if there's no electricity and the local currency collapses.

Agreed regarding precious metals.

By the end of 2013, basic meshnet infrastructure will have been rolled out. Exclusive reliance upon it will result in slow transmission speeds, but so long as there is power, there will be Internet access. Sometime in 2014-15, an even more resilient network should be gaining traction and capable of providing more robust services.

[Trader Steve]

It's entirely plausible to expect Internet access in a certain geographic region to be unavailable for days, possibly weeks, in the event of temporary anarchy. Everyone here understands how regulation and economic forces can devastate a society, sending it back significantly in terms of technology and standard of living.

I think the best way to deal with this is to have a small amount invested in physical precious metals, like one ounce gold and silver rounds. These are more readily spent if there's no electricity and the local currency collapses.

Agreed regarding precious metals.

By the end of 2013, basic meshnet infrastructure will have been rolled out. Exclusive reliance upon it will result in slow transmission speeds, but so long as there is power, there will be Internet access. Sometime in 2014-15, an even more resilient network should be gaining traction and capable of providing more robust services.

That sounds great. How does one get involved and help move this along?

[BitBlitz]

In scenarios where countries or large Geos are isolated form the rest of the Internet, I'd be concerned about which of the two blockchains will orphan the other when connectivity is restored.  

[Herodes]

has there been any larger test cases for a mesh net ?

[DoomDumas]

I found this : https://commotionwireless.net/[/b]]https://commotionwireless.net/

If this project mature enough and gain a lot of participant, this could be an alternative in the event of an internet blackout !

very interesting !

[BkkCoins]

It may be helpful to set up some standards for handling transaction verification via voice calls or radio. It's very hard to say addresses and other long strings by voice reliably.

The Electrum client uses a set of words that are standardized and readable without confusion. It might be handy to create tools for taking addresses, keys, transactions, or signatures and converting them to readable word lists that can be verbally used to verify or send trx.

I wouldn't mind adapting code and writing such tools but I'd need help to determine what's useful and what's not. So given certain scenarios people have for trying to do something by voice with no net, or even by SMS or mail, what bits of info need to be exchanged?

Having a map of what's viable to do this way, a tool for encoding the right data when needed, may just make it feasible in situations. Without having it worked out in advance it would be hard to know what to do or what is secure or even that it may be doable.

[Littleshop]

Remember connection via satellite 

But. isn't that even easier to blackout than any other route??? We don't put sats up the, the Governors do, and we couldn't keep 'em there cos we aren't military.

I think he's talking about the case for example if Iran's government black out the Internet for the people of Iran, then satellite would definitely be an option. Iranian government can't take down other country's satellites. Satellite companies can provide people in Iran satellite internet (though I guess you have to smuggle equipment into Iran first).

Actually they can take out satellites by jamming.  This jamming can be local on the downlink side (possible to get around) or be on the uplink side (much harder to get around). 

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/world/iran-accused-of-jamming-satellites-300145.html

If you have good techs with equipment you can do microwave links in some areas to bridge.

[MoonShadow]

has there been any larger test cases for a mesh net ?

Yes, and there is an org that is doing testing of a wireless mesh WAN, although I can't think of the name just now.  I believe they are working in Arizona right now, but they already have a nationally allocated frequency band license from the FCC, so this is no fly by night operation.

[MoonShadow]

In scenarios where countries or large Geos are isolated form the rest of the Internet, I'd be concerned about which of the two blockchains will orphan the other when connectivity is restored.  

There are ways to determine if you are on the small side of a network split, but none have been implimeted in any client yet, as far as I know.

[MoonShadow]

It's entirely plausible to expect Internet access in a certain geographic region to be unavailable for days, possibly weeks, in the event of temporary anarchy. Everyone here understands how regulation and economic forces can devastate a society, sending it back significantly in terms of technology and standard of living.

I think the best way to deal with this is to have a small amount invested in physical precious metals, like one ounce gold and silver rounds. These are more readily spent if there's no electricity and the local currency collapses.

PM are not really a solution in the near term, as the vast majority of people have zero practical experience with silver or gold coins, in order to recognize them when they need to.  It's relatively easy to create credible fakes of gold plated tungsten while the lights still work that would fool 98%+ of the population after the lights go out.  This condition would last for months, until people began to figure out how to recognize the fakes; and until then most people simply aren't going to trust some guy with gold coins.  Silver has less of a problem here, and is useful in other ways for disinfection, etc, but most people aren't going to have need for silver anyway.  Barter items, such as common firearm caliber ammo, are better for the near term.  Bullets are already money anyway.  They are made of several commodities, are themselves useful, come in common units, are readily recognizeable to those who might wish to trade them, and any one is pretty much interchangeable with any other, and they don't rot.

[Stephen Gornick]

has there been any larger test cases for a mesh net ?

Yes, and there is an org that is doing testing of a wireless mesh WAN, although I can't think of the name just now.  I believe they are working in Arizona right now, but they already have a nationally allocated frequency band license from the FCC, so this is no fly by night operation.

Sounds like Free Network Foundation.   They have a nationwide license for 3.6 GHz  (for backhaul of a Kilometer-wide range).
They are operating a mesh in Kansas City right now.
 - http://commons.thefnf.org/index.php


Incidentally there's another recent thread with some overlap:

Bitcoin + Decentralized Internet = ?
- http://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=127849.0

[cypherdoc]

Here's  a relevant article to this discussion:

Syria's Internet Outage and the Future of Information Warfare
http://www.activistpost.com/2012/12/syrias-internet-outage-and-future-of.html

does anyone else see the irony of the State being actively involved in developing the very tools that will eventually undermine the immense power they so lust?  the Internet itself was developed by the military in conjunction with academia, Tor was developed by the Dept of the Navy, and now NATO is developing the Internet in a Suitcase?  no wonder i'm so bullish on Bitcoin.

this was a great article, as i had articulated earlier this week that the rebels, in fact, had just as much of a motive to disrupt Internet communications within Syria as the gov't.

[FreeMoney]

My bitcoin? What would I do with my day and my life? Walk around and look for berries I guess, maybe fashion a slingshot and take out the fattest squirrels.

[Trader Steve]

Here are some relevant comments as well:

What happens to bitcoin if the internet were to be controlled by the government?
http://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/141j2t/what_happens_to_bitcoin_if_the_internet_were_to/

[miscreanity]

does anyone else see the irony of the State being actively involved in developing the very tools that will eventually undermine the immense power they so lust?  the Internet itself was developed by the military in conjunction with academia, Tor was developed by the Dept of the Navy, and now NATO is developing the Internet in a Suitcase?  no wonder i'm so bullish on Bitcoin.

Digging their own graves. Delicious, isn't it?

[cypherdoc]

does anyone else see the irony of the State being actively involved in developing the very tools that will eventually undermine the immense power they so lust?  the Internet itself was developed by the military in conjunction with academia, Tor was developed by the Dept of the Navy, and now NATO is developing the Internet in a Suitcase?  no wonder i'm so bullish on Bitcoin.

Digging their own graves. Delicious, isn't it?

yes it is.  where can i buy one of those suitcases?  do they come with rollers?  i'll take one in red with leather.