Seattle Health Blog

In a U.S. federal report released this month, a major emergency that keeps people in their homes, such as a worsening of the pandemic H1N1, could threaten to overwhelm the Internet, making it unusable to communicate and conduct transactions are vital for public safety and the economy.

Although the Department of Homeland Security has undertaken some actions to prepare for a pandemic and respond to a possible wave cripple internet use, they are far from sufficient as reported by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) , an investigative arm of Congress.

For example, it should, with the Federal Communications Commission or any other federal agency, determine in advance whether one of them has the power to direct the private sector providers to do what is needed to relieve congestion, the report said.

The Department also failed to assess the feasibility and effectiveness of a campaign to ask the public to reduce non-essential use of the Internet during a major emergency, although internal research indicates that such a restriction could be effective.

Service providers have various options to resolve the congestion, including adding additional capacity, greater use of their means of control of the network, installation of hotlines to major organizations, the temporary reduction in the rate of transmission and the closure of some Internet sites, according to the GAO. But each supplier is left to himself to decide on any action.