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Total collapse? How likely is a global internet outage?
The idea of a potential global internet outage might initially sound like something straight out of a sci‑fi film, yet more and more people are asking the question: what would happen if the web collapsed overnight?
We’ve all experienced that frustrating moment when the connection stutters, a video call drops, or our favourite show starts buffering at the most exciting scene. These minor irritations, however, pale in comparison to the question of whether a complete, global internet outage could ever occur. In an era where almost everything is connected to the network, such a scenario would be not just inconvenient, but genuinely alarming.
The internet is often referred to as a “network of networks.” This means countless smaller systems are interconnected: home routers, corporate servers, public Wi‑Fi hotspots, data centres, and undersea fibre‑optic cables form the global structure we rely on daily. As Live Science notes, for a global internet outage to happen, multiple critical points in this complex infrastructure would need to fail simultaneously.
George Cybenko, a professor at Dartmouth College, says that while theoretically possible, it is extremely unlikely. The system comprises so many diverse elements and operates in such a distributed manner that a total collapse would require enormous resources or an extraordinary confluence of coincidences. Moreover, local networks—such as those in offices or homes—can continue to operate even if the global connection goes down.
How does the system protect itself against outages?
One of the internet’s greatest strengths lies in its architecture. When we transmit data—say, sending a message—the information is broken into small packets. These packets always travel via the fastest and safest routes. If a route fails, the system automatically reroutes the traffic, preventing a single failure from domino‑effecting across the entire network.
Thanks to this, even major incidents rarely result in a total collapse. If a large provider such as Cloudflare goes offline, the disruption usually lasts only a few hours and rarely spreads to other systems. The same applies if an undersea cable is damaged or a data centre loses power.
What could cause a global internet outage?
In extreme cases, such as a particularly strong and unexpected solar storm, significant damage could occur to satellites and electrical infrastructure, potentially crippling the network for an extended period. Nevertheless, governments and major corporations are prepared for such crises: backup generators, data backups, and recovery plans aim to minimise downtime.
Interestingly, some countries have deliberately triggered internet outages during mass protests. By disrupting infrastructure or deliberately slowing connections, access can be restricted. These cases, however, are usually short‑lived and quickly restored.
What would happen if it did occur?
The consequences of a genuine global internet outage would go far beyond mere inconvenience. With hospitals’ IT systems, traffic control, power grids, and other essential services all reliant on the internet, a prolonged outage could even endanger lives.
William Dutton, a researcher at the Oxford Internet Institute, points out that the internet is surprisingly resilient. The more nodes connected to the network, the stronger the system becomes; growth does not weaken the internet—it stabilises it.
While the thought of a global internet outage is alarming, experts agree that the likelihood of it ever happening is very low. Instead of total collapse, we are far more likely to experience brief, localised disruptions—which the network typically recovers from quickly.
The digital world is therefore far more resilient than we might think, and the history of the internet suggests that a worldwide shutdown is more a theoretical possibility than a realistic threat.