[registrars] Internet delivered the good on 9/11.
Dear Colleagues: The following came from a friend of mine who is a private investigator. He operates a web site about inappropriate acts by law enforcement officials. He calls it "The Twisted Badge". Regards, BobC Thursday, November 21, 2002 by Michelle Madigan, Medill News Service WASHINGTON, D.C.--The Internet's resilience after the September 11 terrorist attacks may make the system appear invincible to physical damage, but experts warn that the Net must be a part of any disaster recovery plan.While Americans struggled with jammed telephone networks, backup systems compensated for crucial Internet facilities damaged in the attack in Manhattan, and e-mail and Internet traffic flowed well, says a report released this week by the National Academy of Sciences, a private, nonprofit research group. "Fundamentally, it was testimony to the Internet's inherently flexible and robust design," the report says. Since the system has "rich interconnectivity ... destroying a few key connections will not bring down the Internet," says Sean Donelan, director of Internet security for SBC Communications. Test of Networks The report, compiled from Internet service provider logs and public opinion polls, says that September 11, 2001, began as a fairly routine Tuesday on the networks. Traffic was just beginning to pick up as people arrived at work. When the second plane hit the World Trade Center, users flooded Internet news servers. After the second tower collapsed, Internet connectivity dropped by 8 percent but quickly returned to normal. A power outage later in the afternoon caused a 2 percent dip in connectivity, but Internet traffic remained steady. It was a different story for some 14,000 businesses and 20,000 residents in New York who lost telephone service when Verizon's central office suffered extensive damage. Internet connections were interrupted to several universities, medical colleges, hospitals, and New York City's official government Web site. Doctors in some hospitals could not access patient information on their handheld devices. The plane that crashed into the Pentagon created no significant problems in Internet communications, according to the report. Alternate Communications The study found that during a national crisis, people first turn on the television and then call friends and family. But people increasingly turn to the Internet for supplementary information, relying on news sites, e-mail, and instant messaging. "Internet is the backup communications medium of choice," says Craig Partridge, who chaired the committee. "But people use the Internet very differently in crisis situations." Traffic on Internet news sites increased dramatically. For example, CNN's Web site had 25 times more demand in the two days after the attacks. To deal with the volume on its network, the company reduced the design complexity of its pages to hasten loading, and used additional servers. Effects Abroad International surfers in Italy, Germany, and Romania could not get online because their ISPs depended on facilities in lower Manhattan, the report says. Most surprisingly, one-half of users in South Africa could not access domain names ending in .za because the database for those domain names was also located in Manhattan. "We all know the Internet has effects that are not local," Partridge notes, "but that's a pretty nonlocal effect." Lessons and Plans The report's focus was to describe the September 11 attacks from an Internet perspective, but the committee hopes that decision makers from companies and federal agencies realize their online dependency and take it into account when planning for earthquakes, hurricanes, and other unexpected disasters. The report advises network operators and telecommunications operators to review emergency power procedures. Also, since Internet operations often depend on the public telephone network, telecommunications facility disaster planners are urged to consider support for operational personnel. Finally, Internet news sites need to be prepared for large jumps of traffic in crisis situations. "Think about whether your Web site is important during a time of crisis," says David Clark, senior research scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "Do you have a backup plan?" NOTE - All electronic messages received and sent by this site are inspected and certified to be virus free. If you no longer wish to receive this newsletter, simply respond to this message with "REMOVE" as the subject. If your friends and associates would like to get the inside story, please ask them to send their e-addresses to mike@twistedbadge.com |