What if Governments Shutdown the Internet?

[mrcash02]

I honestly think Bitcoin isn't decentralized enough considering that government still controls the Internet and can easily censor or shut them down (is this even possible?) anytime.
The move by government to make us go cashless by gradually phasing out cash is even more worrisome, could make them have absolute control over us.
We need some sort of decentralized "physical Bitcoin" that doesn't depend on the Internet and can be exchanged for online Bitcoin.  It is too risky not to have offline alternatives to Bitcoin to act as backup plan for online Bitcoin in case something big goes wrong.




Pls I need to know something,  Is it possible to exchange Bitcoin with other people without being connected to the Internet?
Let say the government bans the Internet and you have your Bitcoin offline(in cold storage right?), can you exchange the Bitcoin to the next person by simply transferring some Bitcoin from cold storage to his/her computer, phone or even data storage devices(like SD Card, USB, Hard drive etc)?
If this is possible then no need for the "Physical Bitcoin"

As you have said, bitcoin can still be sent by copying the paper or cold wallet into their computer using flash drives or SD cards. But I don't think it will be of use. Let's say internet was banned, VPN are shut down, no connection, just phone and telegraph, you think people will be still using bitcoin? If that happens no one will be using bitcoin and the world will be boring and disastrous as hell.

There will be always one bastion of freedom remaining in the world. And there will be always hackers able to cheat the government on online camp. It's impossible to stop internet now and it's impossible to stop Bitcoin and hyphotetically, if they do this, it would be the end of the world, the complete chaos, the end of a cycle... It could happen, but I don't think it will happen so fast.

[agentx44]

I honestly think Bitcoin isn't decentralized enough considering that government still controls the Internet and can easily censor or shut them down (is this even possible?) anytime.
The move by government to make us go cashless by gradually phasing out cash is even more worrisome, could make them have absolute control over us.
We need some sort of decentralized "physical Bitcoin" that doesn't depend on the Internet and can be exchanged for online Bitcoin.  It is too risky not to have offline alternatives to Bitcoin to act as backup plan for online Bitcoin in case something big goes wrong.




Pls I need to know something,  Is it possible to exchange Bitcoin with other people without being connected to the Internet?
Let say the government bans the Internet and you have your Bitcoin offline(in cold storage right?), can you exchange the Bitcoin to the next person by simply transferring some Bitcoin from cold storage to his/her computer, phone or even data storage devices(like SD Card, USB, Hard drive etc)?
If this is possible then no need for the "Physical Bitcoin"

In my own opinion if the government shutdown the internet, bitcoin will be also be gone. But i think that the government would not do such a thing because the internet is a very big help to all the people, and the internet has been the part of my life and it has been my hobby to use the internet.

[Kakmakr]

There are other communication methods, but none are so widely used as the internet. The government will not shutdown the Internet to stop Bitcoin, because the whole financial world is built on top of the internet. They might try to excluded vital websites and some services via firewalls, but that has been proven as highly ineffective. < Chinese Firewalls >

You cannot run a network as a island, and the Blockchain is one huge global network that are dependent on nodes being linked globally. < decentralization > ^hmmmmmm^   

[JoMarrah Iarim Dan]

I honestly think Bitcoin isn't decentralized enough considering that government still controls the Internet and can easily censor or shut them down (is this even possible?) anytime.
The move by government to make us go cashless by gradually phasing out cash is even more worrisome, could make them have absolute control over us.
We need some sort of decentralized "physical Bitcoin" that doesn't depend on the Internet and can be exchanged for online Bitcoin.  It is too risky not to have offline alternatives to Bitcoin to act as backup plan for online Bitcoin in case something big goes wrong.




Pls I need to know something,  Is it possible to exchange Bitcoin with other people without being connected to the Internet?
Let say the government bans the Internet and you have your Bitcoin offline(in cold storage right?), can you exchange the Bitcoin to the next person by simply transferring some Bitcoin from cold storage to his/her computer, phone or even data storage devices(like SD Card, USB, Hard drive etc)?
If this is possible then no need for the "Physical Bitcoin"

If ever the government shutdown the internet connection, people do bitcoin is not only the affected, ordinary people, students, teachers, computer shops, PLDT, call centers, even governments (local or not) will also be affected. So it won't be so long that the internet will be shutdown. Another, lots of people will protest for sure. We(people who do bitcoin) are not the only the people who uses internet to earn. But shutting down internet is possible.

[Gumpfire]

I honestly think Bitcoin isn't decentralized enough considering that government still controls the Internet and can easily censor or shut them down (is this even possible?) anytime.
The move by government to make us go cashless by gradually phasing out cash is even more worrisome, could make them have absolute control over us.
We need some sort of decentralized "physical Bitcoin" that doesn't depend on the Internet and can be exchanged for online Bitcoin.  It is too risky not to have offline alternatives to Bitcoin to act as backup plan for online Bitcoin in case something big goes wrong.




Pls I need to know something,  Is it possible to exchange Bitcoin with other people without being connected to the Internet?
Let say the government bans the Internet and you have your Bitcoin offline(in cold storage right?), can you exchange the Bitcoin to the next person by simply transferring some Bitcoin from cold storage to his/her computer, phone or even data storage devices(like SD Card, USB, Hard drive etc)?
If this is possible then no need for the "Physical Bitcoin"

In my own opinion if the government shutdown the internet, bitcoin will be also be gone. But i think that the government would not do such a thing because the internet is a very big help to all the people, and the internet has been the part of my life and it has been my hobby to use the internet.

Yes your right if the government wants to shutdown the internet bitcoin will be gone too. But it is sad to think that the government wants to shutdown the internet because every day in my life, i always use the internet even bitcoins both of them has been a part of life and i don't want both of them to be gone.

[roadbits]

I honestly think Bitcoin isn't decentralized enough considering that government still controls the Internet and can easily censor or shut them down (is this even possible?) anytime.
The move by government to make us go cashless by gradually phasing out cash is even more worrisome, could make them have absolute control over us.
We need some sort of decentralized "physical Bitcoin" that doesn't depend on the Internet and can be exchanged for online Bitcoin.  It is too risky not to have offline alternatives to Bitcoin to act as backup plan for online Bitcoin in case something big goes wrong.




Pls I need to know something,  Is it possible to exchange Bitcoin with other people without being connected to the Internet?
Let say the government bans the Internet and you have your Bitcoin offline(in cold storage right?), can you exchange the Bitcoin to the next person by simply transferring some Bitcoin from cold storage to his/her computer, phone or even data storage devices(like SD Card, USB, Hard drive etc)?
If this is possible then no need for the "Physical Bitcoin"

In my own opinion if the government shutdown the internet, bitcoin will be also be gone. But i think that the government would not do such a thing because the internet is a very big help to all the people, and the internet has been the part of my life and it has been my hobby to use the internet.

Yes your right if the government wants to shutdown the internet bitcoin will be gone too. But it is sad to think that the government wants to shutdown the internet because of every day in my life, I always use the internet even bitcoins both of them has been a part of life and I don't want both of them to be gone.

This is not possible the governament will not shut down the internet forever. Because now all country govt trying to stop cash transaction because to avoid black money in this situation if they stop internet service it will give an impact of their govt. So this could be not possible suppose if they stop our developers will discover a new way to do bitcoin transaction. We can stop the internet but we can not stop technology.

[moooonu]

Internet is everything these days. One can't imagine it's life without internet these days. Shutting down internet will effect financial condition of a country. Banning something from internet can be good but shutting down the whole internet won't be appreciated.

[Gastotade]

Internet is everything these days. One can't imagine it's life without internet these days. Shutting down internet will effect financial condition of a country. Banning something from internet can be good but shutting down the whole internet won't be appreciated.

Many businesses will be affected and no business might get operated so economic status of one country if ever banned or shut down internet may fall and will developed lots of issues and difficulties especially noe that almost all transaction were internet related.

[AicecreaME]

Then let's do it, lol. If they are going to shut it down then be it, we're not the only one who's going to be affected by this scenario, if they are going to shut it down, then they are go8ng to be affected too, there is a lot of things that they couldn't do without the internet. They do have a lot of works to do with the internet, paper works and other documents.

So I think they wouldn't do such thing, because it will backfire to them and they don't want such thing to happen.  

[IGNation]

I dont think that the Government will shutdown internet that easily, they have to think about it since internet is being used everywhere, i think if they shutdown internet it will affect the economy of that country since internet is also used for marketing and other business matter.

[krishnapramod]

I honestly think Bitcoin isn't decentralized enough considering that government still controls the Internet and can easily censor or shut them down (is this even possible?) anytime.
The move by government to make us go cashless by gradually phasing out cash is even more worrisome, could make them have absolute control over us.
We need some sort of decentralized "physical Bitcoin" that doesn't depend on the Internet and can be exchanged for online Bitcoin.  It is too risky not to have offline alternatives to Bitcoin to act as backup plan for online Bitcoin in case something big goes wrong.




Pls I need to know something,  Is it possible to exchange Bitcoin with other people without being connected to the Internet?
Let say the government bans the Internet and you have your Bitcoin offline(in cold storage right?), can you exchange the Bitcoin to the next person by simply transferring some Bitcoin from cold storage to his/her computer, phone or even data storage devices(like SD Card, USB, Hard drive etc)?
If this is possible then no need for the "Physical Bitcoin"

Internet kill switch

An Internet kill switch is the cybercrime and countermeasures concept of activating a single shut off mechanism for all Internet traffic. The theory behind a kill switch is creation of a single point of control for one authority or another to control in order to shut down the Internet to protect it from unspecified assailants; however, groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union and the Nominet Trust have criticized the proposals for implementation made so far.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_kill_switch

The internet kill switch is a concept, but if a government wants to shutdown internet services of a country, it is possible, but still a complex process, a step like this would be taken only during extreme unrest. Leave aside bitcoin, if a government pulls internet shutdown then fiat users would be as helpless as bitcoin users. Currently cashless/electronic transactions dominate cash transactions and internet is the medium for this.

Just a week ago Russian government put a temporary ban on google.ru and like what's happening in Venezuela, the government could block access to bitcoin related websites, but it would not be much effective.

I found a wallet in Google Play Store that have this feature, when you're offline, you can still pay via Bluetooth.

I do not think there is any wallet that offers mobile phone-based bitcoin transfer/SMS based transfer. Something like this would be useful if you do not have internet access and still process offline transaction.

[warwar]

well i dont agree if the government will shut down the network because we as a citezen of our country most of the people wont agreee on it so they are forced to not shutdown the net. Though if the government will ban bitcoin in country it is really possible because there are countries that is banning the uses of bitcoin in their place

[Schuyler]

I honestly think Bitcoin isn't decentralized enough considering that government still controls the Internet and can easily censor or shut them down (is this even possible?) anytime.
The move by government to make us go cashless by gradually phasing out cash is even more worrisome, could make them have absolute control over us.
We need some sort of decentralized "physical Bitcoin" that doesn't depend on the Internet and can be exchanged for online Bitcoin.  It is too risky not to have offline alternatives to Bitcoin to act as backup plan for online Bitcoin in case something big goes wrong.




Pls I need to know something,  Is it possible to exchange Bitcoin with other people without being connected to the Internet?
Let say the government bans the Internet and you have your Bitcoin offline(in cold storage right?), can you exchange the Bitcoin to the next person by simply transferring some Bitcoin from cold storage to his/her computer, phone or even data storage devices(like SD Card, USB, Hard drive etc)?
If this is possible then no need for the "Physical Bitcoin"

Depending on what jurisdiction you are in, your government may have the right to temporarily pull a kill switch on the Internet. The main purpose of internet kill switches is to either prevent some sort of cyber attack or or when the government feels there is a national threat.   Bitcoin is one of the most resilient pieces of software around, it requires the availability of the internet in order to operate. In the unlikely case of a complete Internet shutdown Bitcoin will go down with it, however not all will be lost.

[The_prodigy]

Isn't the Internet controlled by the government in North Korea?  I wonder if they have access to Bitcoin over there?

If they are using VPN on their i think there was a little chance that it will be possible that they will have an access to the internet. If they know how to use it and create it as well. But i think if will that happen we cannot earn bitcoin anymore. It would be very hard for us that thing. But if we want we will make a way to that thing.

[xSkylarx]

Honestly I have watch some documentary I forgot what's the title of the documentary but it was about anonymous,
There was the part of the documentary where the government shuts down the Internet in their country and the anonymous help the Country to get connected again in the internet,
So I think even if the Governments shuts down the Internet we would still find a way to activate it and use it.

[xFiber]

If that happens, boy I believe we will see a massive revolution take place internationally. People will take over eventually and some institution will be created. I'm not sure what the world will look like after that though. Perhaps a society where bitcoin is the primary currency.

[SimmonenY]

I don't think it is possible to shut down the internet, I mean it IS possible but no government will ever do that on purpose. Perhaps during some war in the future one country will do that to their enemy. But then there will be chaos because many services (medicine, transport, etc.) depend on the internet. I also think it's easier to shut down the electricity altogether in that case scenario.

[Proton2233]

Not only people but also governments of all countries will not be able to give up the Internet. Could greatly hurt the economy. The maximum that can go to the government to ban access to certain sites on its territory. Such bans can be easily bypassed and will not achieve any results.

[romero121]

As most of the users stated, government will never make plans of shutting down the internet. These days each and every form of functioning is happening through internet. A small fall in the internet access has made governments stun and has also got added to the history. So internet will be developing big rather than falling low or getting shut.

[Boov]

I honestly think Bitcoin isn't decentralized enough considering that government still controls the Internet and can easily censor or shut them down (is this even possible?) anytime.
The move by government to make us go cashless by gradually phasing out cash is even more worrisome, could make them have absolute control over us.
We need some sort of decentralized "physical Bitcoin" that doesn't depend on the Internet and can be exchanged for online Bitcoin.  It is too risky not to have offline alternatives to Bitcoin to act as backup plan for online Bitcoin in case something big goes wrong.




Pls I need to know something,  Is it possible to exchange Bitcoin with other people without being connected to the Internet?
Let say the government bans the Internet and you have your Bitcoin offline(in cold storage right?), can you exchange the Bitcoin to the next person by simply transferring some Bitcoin from cold storage to his/her computer, phone or even data storage devices(like SD Card, USB, Hard drive etc)?
If this is possible then no need for the "Physical Bitcoin"

This is true.  It also worries me.  I also think that it is possible for the government to shut down internet access.  I believe the reason that cryptocurrencies are working and is in the market is because governments are allowing it.  
They wont allow anything that they cant control and would cause future problems.  I guess there has to have any back ups with this online money.