So on the 4th of October, at about 4:25pm(Nigerian time), WhatsApp, facebook and Instagram all stopped working globally or in most parts of the world. I left off the phone after about over an hour discussion on WhatsApp.
I thought it was the usual network glitch. There was no rain (😂🤣😂). And then I observed that it lingered. Then the panic began and everyone started spreading the news. Colleagues at work, regular phone calls trickled in with questions "Are you also affected?". Some even doubted the functionality of their mobile devices.
By evening, we were all aware of the digital blackout and we had to go off the regular social media rants compulsorily. Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram. All 'dead done' (In Chief Zebrudaya's voice).
No posting on WhatsApp, even ordinary text messages won't deliver. Facebook was stagnant. Instagram entered comatose.
As a journalist, my instinct kicked to action. Wow😲!!! So this can actually happen. I began sampling people's opinions about the incident and it was quite revealing.
Esther, a fashion designer, says "I never believe I could be disconnected for this long. I thought something had happened or was about to happen. I panicked seriously and started calling my folks to check them out. This shows that everything is vain. It was as if I am dead."
A university undergraduate, Paul Edet (not real names) lamented how he had to pause his online training program because of the blackout. He said most of the discussion on WhatsApp that helped in his career was paused abruptly.
Daudu Akanmu is a commercial driver and was not bothered about the incident because he uses a regular phone just for calls and says he is scared silly to use an internet-enabled phone.
What does this incident portend? For those not too tech savvy, this event is called a DDoS attack (A distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack is a malicious attempt to disrupt the normal traffic of a targeted server, service or network by overwhelming the target or its surrounding infrastructure with a flood of Internet traffic.)
Suddenly, we all had to stop and relate with one another directly. Attention shifted from mobile devices to mortal men. We connected and bonded with those around us (compulsorily) because the digital idol was muted.
Human dependence on 'digital' can fizzle out on short notice or without notice. What must you do? Facebook, WhatsApp, instagram are all from same company and when you don't have other communication apps, you could get stranded online. It's time to start thinking of a local backup of very important documents and files on external hard drives. You can password your hard drives while keeping them safe.
Has anyone bothered to ask "What if this same thing happens to gmail, yahoomail or other mailing applications?". I guess most of us never read the terms and agreement when signing up to use these applications. You can't hold these companies liable should your documents or files/attachments get missing during cyber attacks.
This is the generation we have found ourselves and we must adapt or be left behind.
We suddenly realize the vanity of it all. Like chief commander Ebenezer Obey stated in his song "Vanity upon vanity, all is vanity!!!"🙄
#DemolaSanyaolu
#SocialMediaBlackout
#Facebookblackout
#whatsappBlackout
#InstagramBlackout
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