Risk and Resilience Series 2025–2029
Internet Blackout: A Guide When Screens Go Dark
Surviving Extended Internet Outages and Setting Up a Personal Information Command Center
The screens go dark. Mobile data vanishes. The familiar hum of digital connectivity falls silent.
We are so hyper-connected, few scenarios strike more terror than a prolonged internet blackout during a national crisis.
I’ve witnessed our growing dependency on the internet transform from convenience to critical vulnerability.
As with my other posts on risks and resilience, I’m not fear-mongering, I’m tell you about our new reality and how you can prepare.
At some point in the near future, the internet can fail.
Whether through natural disaster, cyber attack, or simple system failure, extended outages will occur.
My only question is: Will you be ready when the screens go dark?
The Perfect Storm
Imagine this scenario: A sophisticated nation-state cyber attack coincides with a natural disaster, creating a cascading failure across critical infrastructure. What are the chances?
It’s already happened. In 2015, Ukraine’s power grid under attack from Russia during winter, leaving 230,000 residents without electricity.
This is not an isolated incident — this is a preview of our future.
Internet connectivity isn’t just about Netflix and social media — it’s about survival.
When the network goes down, so does our access to emergency services, financial systems, and critical information.
Can you rely on FEMA or your local first responders? When the internet is out. It’s very likely they will be overwhelmed and also disconnected.
Immediate Response Protocols
The moment internet connectivity fails, time becomes your most precious resource. Your first actions will determine your resilience throughout the crisis.
Begin by establishing your offline command center — a designated space with essential offline resources, emergency power supplies, and cached critical data.
Verify the scope of the outage through redundant communication channels. Use satellite phones, ham radios, or emergency broadcast systems to gather intelligence about the situation.
Document everything — in a crisis, information becomes currency.
Access your cached offline copies of essential documents: identification, insurance policies, emergency contacts, and medical records.
If you haven’t already stored these locally, let this serve as your wake-up call.
In cybersecurity, we preach defense in depth — the same principle applies to personal preparedness.
Alternative Communication Networks
The internet’s absence reveals our communication infrastructure’s fragility. This is where your pre-established mesh networks and local community connections become invaluable.
Local mesh networks, using technologies that utilize protocols like LoRa or traditional ham radio networks, can maintain critical communication channels when centralized systems fail.
Build relationships with your local Emergency Operations Center (EOC) before disaster strikes.
Understanding their protocols and capabilities gives you a significant advantage during crises.
Remember: in emergency response, personal connections often outperform digital systems.
Managing Without Cloud Services
Our dependence on cloud services creates a particular vulnerability during internet outages.
Banking, healthcare, and essential government services increasingly rely on cloud infrastructure.
The solution? Maintain offline redundancy for critical systems.
Low-power devices, such as the early generations of Kindle tablets, can serve as a reliable storage solution for emergency documentation due to their energy-efficient design.
These devices utilize low-power LCD screens that consume significantly less power compared to modern smartphones or tablets.
As a result, a single charge can last for several weeks, making them ideal for storing critical documents, such as insurance policies, identification, and emergency contact information.
By loading these documents and books onto a low-power device, individuals can ensure access to vital information even in situations where power outlets are scarce or unavailable.
Keep local copies of essential software, books and documentation. Maintain paper records of critical information. To ensure durability of paper-based documents, laminate the sheets.
Yes, it seems archaic, but during extended outages, paper becomes gold. Store emergency funds in cash — when payment systems go down, digital money becomes worthless.
Psychology of Digital Isolation
Extended internet outages create psychological challenges we rarely discuss. The sudden disconnection from our digital world can trigger anxiety, confusion, and panic.
Understanding these psychological impacts is crucial for maintaining clear judgment during crises.
Develop offline decision-making frameworks.
Train yourself to operate without constant access to online resources. Practice scenario-based training regularly.
The military calls this “muscle memory” — in crisis situations, you don’t rise to the occasion, you fall to your level of preparation.
Infrastructure Dependencies
Internet outages rarely occur in isolation. They typically trigger cascading failures across interconnected systems. Understanding these dependencies is crucial for effective preparation.
Power grids rely on internet-based control systems. When these fail, power distribution becomes unstable.
Healthcare systems lose access to critical patient data and coordination capabilities. Transportation networks lose real-time tracking and coordination abilities. Financial systems cannot process transactions or verify identities.
This interconnectedness means preparation must account for multiple simultaneous system failures.
Your response strategy must address not just the loss of internet connectivity, but the broader implications for critical infrastructure.
Building Resilient Communities
Individual preparation, while essential, isn’t enough. Community resilience becomes crucial during extended outages. Establish local support networks before crises occur.
Create community caches of essential supplies and equipment. Develop local expertise in critical skills like emergency communications and basic infrastructure maintenance.
The strongest communities during crises aren’t those with the most resources — they’re those with the best organization and preparation.
Technical Considerations for Recovery
When systems begin to recover, the transition period presents unique challenges and opportunities.
Prepare for degraded service levels and intermittent connectivity. Establish clear protocols for system restoration and verification.
Trust nothing until verified — during recovery periods, threat actors often exploit confusion to compromise recovering systems.
Maintain offline copies of system documentation and recovery procedures. During extended outages, institutional knowledge becomes unreliable as staff scatter and communication breaks down. Written procedures become invaluable during recovery operations.
Adaptation Strategies
Extended internet outages may become more common as infrastructure ages and threats evolve. Develop long-term strategies for operating in a potentially disconnected environment:
Create robust offline backup systems for critical data and operations. Establish alternative communication protocols and train regularly in their use. Build redundancy into essential systems — remember, single points of failure become catastrophic during crises.
Pardon the interruption. Take a moment to follow me for actionable advice and insights to navigate this uncertain world.
Your Offline Library
Consider this stark reality: our collective human knowledge, centuries of careful observation and hard-won wisdom, sits behind a digital wall that can vanish in an instant.
When the internet goes dark, so does our ability to Google “which mushrooms will kill me” or “how to purify water without chemicals.” In our rush to digitize everything, we’ve created a dangerous knowledge dependency that could prove fatal during extended crises.
“In an age of infinite digital knowledge, the most valuable survival tool might be a well-curated bookshelf.”
Your offline library isn’t just a collection of books — it’s your survival insurance policy.
Start with the fundamentals: comprehensive urban or wilderness survival guides, detailed medical reference manuals, and regional plant identification books.
These aren’t casual reading material; they’re literal lifesavers when digital references become inaccessible.
But don’t stop at survival basics.
Think broader: detailed electronics repair manuals, mechanical system guides, basic engineering texts.
When infrastructure fails, the ability to repair and maintain becomes priceless. Include books on practical chemistry, basic pharmaceutical knowledge, and emergency medicine.
During extended crises, understanding how to create basic medicines or properly use alternatives could mean the difference between life and death.
The key is strategic curation.
Each book should earn its space through practical utility and comprehensive coverage.
Prioritize detailed technical manuals over general guides. Look for water-resistant editions when available — emergencies rarely respect optimal storage conditions.
Consider multiple copies of crucial references — knowledge worth having is worth having redundantly.
The most dangerous assumption in our digital age is that information will always be a click away.
Essential additions to your offline library should include: Regional edible plant guides with detailed photographs and poisonous look-alike warnings. Advanced first aid manuals that go beyond basic care to cover extended emergency scenarios.
Detailed technical documentation for critical infrastructure systems — electrical, plumbing, radio communications.
Basic pharmaceutical compounding guides and alternative medicine references.
Agricultural manuals specific to your climate zone. Basic engineering and repair guides for common equipment and vehicles.
These aren’t just books — they’re tools. Tools that work without power, without updates, without connectivity. Tools that could save your life when the digital world goes dark.
In a crisis, the most valuable person in your community might be the one who can access and apply critical knowledge when all screens show nothing but blackness.
Preparation as Prevention
The best response to potential internet outages is comprehensive preparation. This isn’t about paranoia — it’s about professional responsibility.
As cybersecurity professionals, we understand the vulnerabilities in our digital infrastructure better than most.
This knowledge carries an obligation to prepare and help others prepare. Document your preparation strategies.
Share knowledge with your community. Leverage your community to help build out and maintain redundant local emergency information systems.
During crises, community resilience often determines individual survival.
The time to prepare isn’t during the crisis — it’s now. Every day without preparation is a gamble with increasingly high stakes.
In crisis preparation, the goal isn’t to predict every possible scenario — it’s to build robust systems and communities that can adapt to whatever challenges arise.
Start today. The clock is ticking.
Here’s a collection of posts that can help you navigate today’s uncertain, turbulent world.
