The Essentials of Computer Organization and Architecture, 6th Edition

1.8 THE FRAGILITY OF THE INTERNET

As mentioned in our discussion of cloud computing, the Internet can and does go down. We live in an era in which we are so connected that our dependence on the Internet has grown to almost critical levels. The impact the Internet has had on our daily lives was unimaginable even 25 years ago, and every day exciting new opportunities present themselves. Although the Internet is obviously our main conduit for information and financial transactions, it not so obviously is the fabric for supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) networks. SCADA systems operate vital portions of our physical infrastructure, including power generation facilities, transportation networks, sewage systems, and oil and gas pipelines, ...