Reply to: I wonder if anyone has noticed that the meek have inherited the earth?

[bobspud]

Have you been watching Die Hard! 4.0 again?

No their premise was it could be done from the outside. I am suggesting that a more organised and militant form of Anonymous could do a hell of a lot of damage pretty much before anyone could stop them and without any easy remedy.

Whoever owned the world when IT guys had finished destroying it is not as much the point as the fact that it would not be the 1% in charge anymore.

[Troll]

Think back a couple of years to the volcanic ash cloud. The idea that all flights would be stopped was pretty unthinkable, but it happened and the world didn't fall apart. We're adaptable - that's why we outlived the dinosaurs.

Was it just me that enjoyed the vapour trail and noise free skies ?

[Spacecadet]

I didn't say the meek could hold on to it in the long term...

Then they're not really inheriting the earth are they!

[mudskipper]

Think back a couple of years to the volcanic ash cloud. The idea that all flights would be stopped was pretty unthinkable, but it happened and the world didn't fall apart. We're adaptable - that's why we outlived the dinosaurs.

[BlasterBates]

If the supermarkets closed most of the population of the earth would be dead within three months. If the water companies as well then it would take three days, if the janitors sabotaged the air conditioning systems then it would take 3 minutes.

[bobspud]

Once you've stopped society who do you think will be taking charge? the meek geek in the specs who just turned off a couple of servers or the nutters with the guns and ropes?

I didn't say the meek could hold on to it in the long term...

[Alias]

Its not my importance, I haven't ran systems since 2001.

But we have been on a sleepwalk into total reliance on IT as the backbone to everything we do.

Yes delivery drivers can down their keys but the army can be drafted into drive trucks if needed.

IT holds the keys to pretty much everything now.
The national phone network was changed from point to point to switch/routed some years ago so a stab at the few key Ciscos at the heart of that will shut all coms down in less than a few hours.
Radio stations are pretty much x86 technology.
Cash points still running windows 2000... (Don't ask what crap is hidden in the server farms)
London Stock Exchange = windows based virtualisation technology running linux.
Police Call Centres (tangled piles of crap technology)
Fire / Ambulance (see above)
CCTV id all IP based...

Our power stations are based on just in time delivery of fuel sources so it would not take too long before they couldn't generate enough power to even run the data centres we need to run the power stations themselves

So killing no more than a few dozen targets would pretty much render the UK out cold without the ability to restart itself...

Have you been watching Die Hard! 4.0 again?

[bobspud]

I think you're vastly overestimating your own importance.

Yes, ALL systems going down would cause problems, but a lot of these could be manually worked around.

Its not my importance, I haven't ran systems since 2001.

But we have been on a sleepwalk into total reliance on IT as the backbone to everything we do.

Yes delivery drivers can down their keys but the army can be drafted into drive trucks if needed.

IT holds the keys to pretty much everything now.
The national phone network was changed from point to point to switch/routed some years ago so a stab at the few key Ciscos at the heart of that will shut all coms down in less than a few hours.
Radio stations are pretty much x86 technology.
Cash points still running windows 2000... (Don't ask what crap is hidden in the server farms)
London Stock Exchange = windows based virtualisation technology running linux.
Police Call Centres (tangled piles of crap technology)
Fire / Ambulance (see above)
CCTV id all IP based...

Our power stations are based on just in time delivery of fuel sources so it would not take too long before they couldn't generate enough power to even run the data centres we need to run the power stations themselves

So killing no more than a few dozen targets would pretty much render the UK out cold without the ability to restart itself...

[Spacecadet]

The difference is its hard to stop society today with just a gun or a knife on its own.

However if someone co-ordinated stops the people from getting to their digital money or tescos from getting their just in time stock orders or petrol deliveries... how long would things hold together?

Once you've stopped society who do you think will be taking charge? the meek geek in the specs who just turned off a couple of servers or the nutters with the guns and ropes?

[MyUserName]

Surely there are several careers that could cause issues if they all stopped working together though?

If all delivery drivers refused to deliver anything and walked off with the keys to the lorries we would be crippled, if prison guards opened all the cells and walked off we would see serious problems pretty quickly, if every salesman in the country refused to serve anyone (including internet orders) then things would get unpleasant fast.

Are Sys Admins that special?

[Ticktock]

I think you're vastly overestimating your own importance.

Yes, ALL systems going down would cause problems, but a lot of these could be manually worked around.

[bobspud]

I will borrow money from a loan shark until they fix the problem

A) How much are you prepared to pay to borrow a £1,000 ?
B) How long before petrol and food prices sky rocket on the basis that there is no replacement products turning up tomorrow because the import systems and air traffic controls are sleeping?
C) While you are patiently awaiting a return to normal, how many of your fellow humans are going to do the same?

[Brussels Slumdog]

The difference is its hard to stop society today with just a gun or a knife on its own.

However if someone co-ordinated stops the people from getting to their digital money or tescos from getting their just in time stock orders or petrol deliveries... how long would things hold together?

I will borrow money from a loan shark until they fix the problem

[bobspud]

Guns,knives, fists etc will still work when the computers stop

The difference is its hard to stop society today with just a gun or a knife on its own.

However if someone co-ordinated stops the people from getting to their digital money or tescos from getting their just in time stock orders or petrol deliveries... how long would things hold together?

[Spacecadet]

Guns,knives, fists etc will still work when the computers stop