Monday morning (for hours) Google had a “complication” that swiftly shut down Gmail, Google Drive and YouTube. Meaning that all of these applications were not accessible to the worldwide public for hours on end.
In many ways, the tech world literally came to a halt.
99.9% of us depend on Google to get through life these days. And for a few hours, we faced the horrid reality of what life was like without Google.
Admittedly, I was unaware of the situation and thus unaffected by it. Yet, undoubtedly affected millions of people and businesses throughout the world.
A large number of companies are centralized through Google. Among them: Uber, Instacart, Netflix & Twitter.
I am sure the above companies were/are less than pleased with Monday’s events.
Later Monday afternoon once the situation was under control, Google released a statement. The statement read that the rather large faux pas was caused by an “internal issue”. Nothing more.
Should we really believe Google?
I honestly don’t know. Someone out there who is more attune to technological security matters, please advise.
What I do know is that this entire situation is not ideal. Of course, Google’s reputation takes a hit. In my opinion, the situation goes further than that. It creates skepticism about a world that is increasingly more focused and reliant on technology.
Even if the temporary collapse on Monday was an internal accident, I believe it serves as a wake up call.
While tech and the Internet are life changing in many ways, we must remain cautious. Our Finances, documents, text messages, and overall livelihoods exist and depend on technology. Imagine if the companies we depended on, like Google, went out for a substantial amount of time. Days, weeks, even months.
What if Google were hacked by a foreign enemy?
I am no conspiracy theorist. But these worries seem to be at the very least possible (and maybe even probable) in our tech-reliant world’s future.
Ponder the above material and let us know your thoughts!