Image via Mashable.com
Last Friday, nearly the entire nation of Egypt lost access to the outside world via the Internet when the president ordered the country’s Internet service providers to shut down in the midst of protests and DDoS attacks on government sites. Over 80 million people are now isolated; some from their families in other countries, and others from important business contacts abroad, with the exception of very limited options.
It is indeed a scary situation, and one that makes me stop and think: “Could it happen in the US?”
The US government is actually considering a bill (again) that would give certain officials access to an “internet kill switch” in the event of a “true cyber emergency”. What isn’t clear, however, is what exactly would constitute that type of emergency. Is silencing your citizens because they are dissenting from the government one of the scenarios they envision? Senator Susan Collins, the bill’s co-sponsor, states that the government would not do that, but how many empty promises have we had in the past?
I’m going to be following this legislation closely, and I urge you to do the same. Speak up about government action that you are not comfortable with. We live in a democratic nation in which you are currently able to voice your opinions. Use that power before you are in danger of losing it.
For an up-to-date guide on the events happening in Egypt, check out Huffington Post’s EGYPT: A Complete Guide To The 2011 Revolution.
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Cynthia Yildirim, Wes Novack, viaseo, Joe Brenneman, Wendy Coneybeer and others. Wendy Coneybeer said: Could a US “Internet Kill Switch” mimic Egypt’s Internet blackout? http://bit.ly/h3extV #Egypt #politics [...]