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  • Category: Miscellaneous

    What does the recent Microsoft Windows 'Blue blackout' teach us

    I am still not able to comprehend the universal ramifications of many dangers that may happen in the modern world of monopolies, extreme commercialization and specialization of everything.

    There are such anecdotes in our ancient texts when Vayu (Air) or Yamaraj (Lord of Death) stopped their duty and how the Universe stuck up. We may laugh them off as myth or stories. But they were all pointers and warnings to us.

    The latest Microsoft CrowdStrike issue also is another signal towards the impending dangers that may be more damaging, in terms of not just cost and time, but many other dimensions too.

    (It is still not known clearly why the Israeli automatic countersecurity failed on Oct.7 2023 though it was taken to be foolproof.) All prove that we are still vulnerable.

    I am afraid what will be consequences after a few years when AI will be more in control. We had reported incidents of a mechanical robot 'murdering' a fellow human worker due to some 'error'.

    I had given a veiled hint in this post #779095 wherein I said "..We are so accustomed, addicted and subjugated monopolistically to most modern facilities that we do not know how to respond and adjust when they fail......Many of our people even the so-called intellectuals and think tanks do not evaluate the dangers of the situation and mock off the visionary leaders when they say about self- sustenance, self-dependence and 'Make in India".
    Let us learn lessons.

    What did you learn from this CrowdStrike-Microsoft Windows issue?
  • #781174
    I would say that this is a digital catastrophe and there are many hidden dangers in it. We are heading to fully automated regimes in many areas controlled by digital technologies and if the system fails for any reason hackers or technical then it would be disastrous.
    Knowledge is power.

  • #781177
    Well, we are living in a compromised world at the moment. Everything is dependent on internet and computers. In case something happens to this internet and computer system everything will collapse with no alternatives available. We are too much relying on companies like Microsoft and Google for all our needs. In the same way most of the smartphone users are Android users. There is a clear monopoly like situation in both desktop and smartphone users.

    I read in news that Kerala government was the only one using Ubuntu OS, which saved them from glitch because only windows OS was affected. There is still time for people to think about alternatives because we can't just rely totally on a single thing for all our needs. There should be at least 3 to 4 options available to customers then only we will have a safe and secure internet.

    Thanks and regards.

  • #781181
    An IT outage two days back, an update of a product offered by global cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike has problems with Microsoft's Windows across the planet This has affected works in many sectors. Our SBI also announced that there are minor problems in some banks. The major issue is with the AIrline systems across India in many airports. Many flights got cancelled and it was said that now normalcy is restored.
    We are all depending more on technological developments and electronic gadgets. Sometimes such gadgets may get into trouble when we don't know how to tackle the issue and bring back normalcy. Many of us know about the film ' ROBO' in which a bobo fell in love with a lady. Such things may become reality also and one should get ready to face such situations efficiently. Anyhow, there are professionals who can deal with such issues and see that the damage will be as minimal as possible.

    drrao
    always confident

  • #781210
    Such incidents reveals the fragility of this digital world. Everything is so fragile that it can collapse at any moment and we don't have any options to deal with such situations. Some scientists have already predicted that a solar storm can destroy the whole satellite communication and cripple the whole world. The crowdstrike incident was just a trailer for the things to come in near future. Everything has some cons and this digital world is surely not a perfect world as painted by many people.
    Humble yourself or life will do it for you!

  • #781211
    "Everything has some cons and this digital world is surely not a perfect world as painted by many people.". Yes that is the core truth.
    We are now becoming dependent on the internet and digital world. Just as we are dependent on many other things and we find in the wilderness when they fail or suffer from even a short period down time. However unlike the stand-alone aids and appliances we are using till now, the future is of total integration and networking. A small vulnerability and weakness leading to some serious issue can have a cascading universal impact.
    Combined with the E governance and AI domination, it can even lead to catastrophe.

    The simplest thing we can put in place is alternative, indigenous stand alone data storage and disaster management and recovery systems.

  • #781223
    There are some risks associated with the use of digital applications. The more we are used to the internet and digital appliances, the more we are risking our current processes. We don't think even of the corrective remedies in the hours of crisis.
    We need to explore the possibilities of its alternative solution. The present situation of non - functioning of Microsoft system reminds us a suitable backup to be put to the application in case some faults appear in the system.

  • #781225
    These are the risk associated with advance technology and increasing digital usage in the world. A small mistake can bring a catastrophe of high magnitude. People who are upgrading and modifying these softwares should take all measures possible not to allow such situations in future.
    Thoughts exchanged is knowledge gained.


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