11/05/09
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Real-world virus could cause virtual ills
The Government Accountability Office last week issued a report saying that rampant school and work absenteeism caused by pandemic swine flu could cause serious internet speed problems due to congestion.
The report notes that, since private internet service providers do not have the same ability to shape and prioritize online traffic that corporate and academic networks do, the potential for a nation-wide bandwidth spike would be created if there is a sudden rash of swine flu cases which prompt students and workers to stay home from their schools or workplaces.
The GAO says that insufficient precautions have been taken to ensure internet availability during such a spike, and that the possibility of damage to critical telecommunications infrastructure is a real one. However, the report's authors also say that the security exchanges and clearing organizations do not use the public internet, and rely instead on proprietary networks that would be unaffected by an internet-wide slowdown.
Some online pundits have predicted a similar spike due to the rise in 3G mobile device use, but the internet has successfully coped with all potential problems so far.