What if the web goes down ?

[loggo]

I see the Government is currently suggesting that we all have a good stockpile of food, water etc at home in case there should be any disruption. I note recently they also suggest that we have a few hundreds or more in cash handy, in case credit cards, etc become unusable.
I'm guessing, most of us here have an amount of money in a bank/ISA etc. - somewhere that exists in only as a number of bits of code on some software, what happens if banks, etc get hacked and things are deleted or made unrecoverable ? Is it only me who's thinking of drawing it all out and putting it under the mattress or am I just being unrealistic ?

[JQ]

loggo said:

I see the Government is currently suggesting that we all have a good stockpile of food, water etc at home in case there should be any disruption. I note recently they also suggest that we have a few hundreds or more in cash handy, in case credit cards, etc become unusable.
I'm guessing, most of us here have an amount of money in a bank/ISA etc. - somewhere that exists in only as a number of bits of code on some software, what happens if banks, etc get hacked and things are deleted or made unrecoverable ? Is it only me who's thinking of drawing it all out and putting it under the mattress or am I just being unrealistic ?

I'd have thought that if we get to a point where the banking system has collapsed, all money (cash & electronic), investments, gold, silver will have negligible value. It will be food, fuel, water, guns, trades, etc that will become the new currency.

[dirty boy]

Creamed rice, flour, pickles.

Guns, crossbows.

Get your orders in.

[98elise]

JQ said:

loggo said:

I see the Government is currently suggesting that we all have a good stockpile of food, water etc at home in case there should be any disruption. I note recently they also suggest that we have a few hundreds or more in cash handy, in case credit cards, etc become unusable.
I'm guessing, most of us here have an amount of money in a bank/ISA etc. - somewhere that exists in only as a number of bits of code on some software, what happens if banks, etc get hacked and things are deleted or made unrecoverable ? Is it only me who's thinking of drawing it all out and putting it under the mattress or am I just being unrealistic ?

I'd have thought that if we get to a point where the banking system has collapsed, all money (cash & electronic), investments, gold, silver will have negligible value. It will be food, fuel, water, guns, trades, etc that will become the new currency.

This.

If the banks data got deleted it can be recovered from multiple back ups in multiple places. If we're at the point it can't be restored then its because the entire system has gone. At that point paper money is also useless.

As you say we're back to what has practical value in a barter situation.

[Simpo Two]

I think it's incredible that H. sapiens, after a million years in the evolutionary pot, has in just 20 years hung his entire existence on a thing called the internet. Could we survive without it? No food in the shops, tills won't work. Every function of life has been hooked into the internet. People mentally implode even if their mobile phone doesn't work. We just sleepwalked into it. Incredible.

[JQ]

98elise said:

JQ said:

loggo said:

I see the Government is currently suggesting that we all have a good stockpile of food, water etc at home in case there should be any disruption. I note recently they also suggest that we have a few hundreds or more in cash handy, in case credit cards, etc become unusable.
I'm guessing, most of us here have an amount of money in a bank/ISA etc. - somewhere that exists in only as a number of bits of code on some software, what happens if banks, etc get hacked and things are deleted or made unrecoverable ? Is it only me who's thinking of drawing it all out and putting it under the mattress or am I just being unrealistic ?

I'd have thought that if we get to a point where the banking system has collapsed, all money (cash & electronic), investments, gold, silver will have negligible value. It will be food, fuel, water, guns, trades, etc that will become the new currency.

This.

If the banks data got deleted it can be recovered from multiple back ups in multiple places. If we're at the point it can't be restored then its because the entire system has gone. At that point paper money is also useless.

As you say we're back to what has practical value in a barter situation.

Farmers will become the new billionaires, but only for as long as they can defend their land. Not long I suspect and I guess that's why the current billionaires are building huge underground secure bunkers in remote locations around the world. New Zealand is popular I believe.

[200Plus Club]

dirty boy said:

Creamed rice, flour, pickles.

Guns, crossbows.

Get your orders in.

I have one of those items and it'd be really helpful if the apocalypse arrived in gathering up the other items needed !
(Altho I'm not a fan of creamed rice)

Plus dont forget your Cardio, as recommended in Zombieland..

[s p a c e m a n]

I have a tv series for you to watch..

Mr. Robot (TV Series 2015–2019) - IMDb https://share.google/VMPEZTjndyw9qK7OH

[OIC]

I fully expect this lunatic Gubberment to issue nationwide cyanide pills on a just in case required basis.

Together with a helpful English only leaflet on how to use your pill [Ben Elton]little bit of politics there[/Ben Elton].

That or a learn to speak Russian fast app.

Maybe both.

And a free jar of marmalade.

They got my vote, oh yessir.

[K50 DEL]

Simpo Two said:

I think it's incredible that H. sapiens, after a million years in the evolutionary pot, has in just 20 years hung his entire existence on a thing called the internet. Could we survive without it? No food in the shops, tills won't work. Every function of life has been hooked into the internet. People mentally implode even if their mobile phone doesn't work. We just sleepwalked into it. Incredible.

Yep, this.

Even those of us who work in tech, so understand the risks a little more are often forced into using "digital only" as that's all that's available.
I had to leave a town centre car park not that long ago as I didn't have my wallet or phone on me, was planning on paying cash to park for a quick pop to get some milk but the parking machines don't have that option!

[Hustle_]

I hope this is peak internet and we go over the hump.

Bit like we took globalisation to outrageous extremes before factors conspired to remind us that locality is a thing.

[bloomen]

I'll be amazed if every significant institution doesn't have an air gapped offline backup. They'd be beyond barking not to.

That may not be much use if none of it can ever reach a functioning internet again.

Hustle_ said:

I hope this is peak internet and we go over the hump.

Doubt it.

AI will follow the exact same trajectory.

If there's profit to be made and money to be saved then every previous bridge will be forever burnt.

[Simpo Two]

OIC said:

And a free jar of marmalade.

They got my vote, oh yessir.

And gherkins! Everybody knows that the poorest in society live exclusively on marmalade and gherkins

When you look back at the last 30 years, under the surface this country has somehow managed to voluntarily destroy itself. In fact I'd put the start date at 1997 when 'New Labour' took over. Whoops, politics.

Back to the 80s!

[DonkeyApple]

loggo said:

I see the Government is currently suggesting that we all have a good stockpile of food, water etc at home in case there should be any disruption. I note recently they also suggest that we have a few hundreds or more in cash handy, in case credit cards, etc become unusable.
I'm guessing, most of us here have an amount of money in a bank/ISA etc. - somewhere that exists in only as a number of bits of code on some software, what happens if banks, etc get hacked and things are deleted or made unrecoverable ? Is it only me who's thinking of drawing it all out and putting it under the mattress or am I just being unrealistic ?

All the govt wants is for people to think ahead like they used to and have some things in the cupboard. The way most modern people live would mean any issue would be an unnecessary disaster.

We've all gotten used to 24/7 life so they just want people to be better prepared for something like a malicious hack on a utility or payment processing service.

What the government wants to be able to do in such a situation is their job which is to focus resources on the genuinely vulnerable without having an army of non vulnerable folks getting in the way and demanding those limited resources when there was never a need.

It seems clear that they're seeing an inordinate rise in malicious hacking and are being sensible and working to the logical assumption that one or more will get through.

Just have some basic stuff set aside to ensure you're not an unnecessary casualties and drain. It'll greatly help those far less fortunate who will need help should a region lose a utility.

[Simpo Two]

DonkeyApple said:

We've all gotten used to 24/7 life so they just want people to be better prepared for something like a malicious hack on a utility or payment processing service.

It makes me think of the stupendous job the government of 1939/40 did in getting an unprepared civilian population ready for what was coming. And without an internet.

Dig for victory!

'Is there an app for it?'

[Nicetobenice]

Simpo Two said:

And gherkins! Everybody knows that the poorest in society live exclusively on marmalade and gherkins

When you look back at the last 30 years, under the surface this country has somehow managed to voluntarily destroy itself. In fact I'd put the start date at 1997 when 'New Labour' took over. Whoops, politics.

Back to the 80s!

Surely the start was the 80s?

The market is bound to ensttify everything when profit is the only measure of success.

[DonkeyApple]

Simpo Two said:

DonkeyApple said:

We've all gotten used to 24/7 life so they just want people to be better prepared for something like a malicious hack on a utility or payment processing service.

It makes me think of the stupendous job the government of 1939/40 did in getting an unprepared civilian population ready for what was coming. And without an internet.

Dig for victory!

'Is there an app for it?'

We like to glorify the past but quietly we know that a large slug of the country were absolute fknuggets who needed everything explained to them no different to today or at any other time.

Those of us who recall the crap of the 70s probably naturally keep stuff aside without even realising but most folks under 50 wouldn't and the youngest adults genuinely have a tendency to have nothing set aside.

What I'm not understanding is why anyone is even giving this a second thought let alone making out there's some kind of issue. Just add a few things and think nothing more about it.

[BritishBlitz87]

JQ said:

I'd have thought that if we get to a point where the banking system has collapsed, all money (cash & electronic), investments, gold, silver will have negligible value. It will be food, fuel, water, guns, trades, etc that will become the new currency.

There has never been a time when gold and silver have become worthless.

There have been times when food was so scarce the prices shot up to ridiculous levels so you might need a lot more gold/silver/cash than usual.

At the end of the day cash is a medium of exchange to make trade easier. That's not going to change especially since if this happened no more cash would be minted either, so no hyperinflation. If everyone has some cash, but Person A has food and needs water, and Person B needs food and has some shotgun shells, and a third party has water but needs diesel and so on and so forth, cash means everyone can get what they want over a period of time instead of everyone having to been in the same room together!

Even primitive cultures end up with some form of "money"

[bloomen]

BritishBlitz87 said:

There has never been a time when gold and silver have become worthless.

There has never been a time where a massively overloaded and weedy society took a fatal st.

Gold and silver's value would last as long as there was the vague hope that normality would return.

As soon as it became clear that it wasn't on the horizon, you'd be laughed at for trying to exchange a rock for anything of actual value.

Preusmably people would organise enough for something functional to operate eventually, at which point generational memory kicks in with the shiny stuff, but that'll be long after the time you truly needed it.

Edited by bloomen on Tuesday 27th October 22:25

[NortonES2]

Or the cynical person would say if there's a cost of living crisis and people aren't buying as much as usual then stir up some panic buying to get those VAT receipts back up.