How to Communicate if Federals Shut Down Internet

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Watchman
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How to Communicate if Federals Shut Down Internet

Post by Watchman »

Obviously you can't read this if the internet becomes shut down - print this out and keep for reference.

http://howto.wired.com/wiki/Communicate ... r_Internet

Communicate if Your Government Shuts Off Your Internet
From Wired How-To Wiki

Scenario: Your government is displeased with the communication going on in your location and pulls the plug on your internet access, most likely by telling the major ISPs to turn off service.

This is what happened in Egypt Jan. 25 prompted by citizen protests, with sources estimating that the Egyptian government cut off approximately 88 percent of the country's internet access. What do you do without internet? Step 1: Stop crying in the corner. Then start taking steps to reconnect with your network. Here’s a list of things you can do to keep the communication flowing.

This article is part of a wiki anyone can edit. If you have advice to add, please log in and contribute.
Contents

* 1 Preventative measures
o 1.1 Make your network tangible
o 1.2 Broadcast on the radio
o 1.3 Phone
o 1.4 Fax
* 2 Getting back online
o 2.1 Find the privately-run ISPs
o 2.2 Return to dial-up
o 2.3 Ad-Hoc Networking
* 3 Get satellite access
* 4 Packet Radio
* 5 Back to Basics
* 6 Additional Resources

Preventative measures
Make your network tangible

Print out your contact list, so your phone numbers aren’t stuck in the cloud. Some mail services like Gmail allow you to export your online contact list in formats that are more conducive to paper, such as CSV or Vcard, and offer step-by-step guides on how to do this.
Broadcast on the radio

CB Radio: Short for "Citizens Band" radio, these two-way radios allow communication over short distances on 40 channels. You can pick one up for about $20 to $50 at Radio Shack, and no license is required to operate it.

Ham radio: To converse over these radios, also known as "amateur radios," you have to obtain an operator's license from the FCC. Luckily, other Wired How-To contributors have already explained exactly what you need to do to get one and use it like a pro.

GMRS: The General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS) is a licensed land-mobile FM UHF radio service in the United States available for short-distance two-way communication. It is intended for use by an adult individual who possesses a valid GMRS license, as well as his or her immediate family members... They are more expensive than the walkie talkies typically found in discount electronics stores, but are higher quality.

Family Radio Service: The Family Radio Service (FRS) is an improved walkie talkie radio system authorized in the United States since 1996. This personal radio service uses channelized frequencies in the ultra high frequency (UHF) band. It does not suffer the interference effects found on citizens' band (CB) at 27 MHz, or the 49 MHz band also used by cordless phones, toys, and baby monitors.

Microbroadcasting: Microbroadcasting is the process of broadcasting a message to a relatively small audience. This is not to be confused with low-power broadcasting. In radio terms, it is the use of low-power transmitters to broadcast a radio signal over the space of a neighborhood or small town. Similarly to pirate radio, microbroadcasters generally operate without a license from the local regulation body, but sacrifice range in favor of using legal power limits.
Phone

Set up a phone tree: According to the American Association of University Women, a phone tree is "a prearranged, pyramid-shaped system for activating a group of people by telephone" that can "spread a brief message quickly and efficiently to a large number of people." Dig out that contact list you printed out and follow the steps on the AAUW website to spread the message down your pyramid of contacts.

Enable Twitter via SMS: Though the thought of unleashing the Twitter fire hose in your text message inbox may seem horrifying, it would be better than not being able to connect to the outside world at all. The Twitter website has full instructions on how to redirect tweets to your phone.

Alex Jones and infowars.com have a telephone number for people to listen to his radio show by phone, in case the internet goes down, or if you don't have internet. The phone in listen line is 512-646-5000.
Fax

If you need to quickly send and receive documents with lengthy or complex instructions, phone conversations may result in misunderstandings, and delivering the doc by foot would take forever. Brush the dust off that bulky old machine, establish a connection by phone first with the recipient to make sure his machine is hooked up, then fax away.

You may not need a fax machine to send or receive faxes if your computer has a dial-up fax application.
Getting back online

While it might be relatively easy for a government to cut connections by leveraging the major ISPs, there are some places they wouldn't get to so readily, like privately-owned networks and independent ISPs.
Find the privately-run ISPs

In densely populated areas, especially in central business districts and city suburbs there are multiple home WiFi networks overlapping each other, some secure, some not. If there is no internet, open up your WiFi by removing password protection: If enough people do this it's feasible to create a totally private WiFi service outside government control covering the CBD, and you can use applications that run Bonjour (iChat on Mac for example) to communicate with others on the open network and send and receive documents. **needs more clarification

If you are a private ISP, it's your time to shine. Consider allowing open access to your Wi-Fi routers to facilitate communication of people around you until the grid is back online.
Return to dial-up

According to an article in the BBC about old tech's role in the Egyptian protests, "Dial-up modems are one of the most popular routes for Egyptians to get back online. Long lists of international numbers that connect to dial-up modems are circulating in Egypt thanks to net activists We Re-Build, Telecomix and others."

Dial-up can be slow. Often, there is a lightweight mobile version of a site that you can load from your desktop browser quickly despite the limitations of dial-up. Examples: mobile.twitter.com, m.facebook.com, m.gmail.com.
Ad-Hoc Networking

Most wireless routers, PCs, laptops, and even some ultramobile devices like cellphones have the ability to become part of an "ad hoc" network, where different "nodes" (all of the devices on the network) share the responsibility of transmitting data with one another. These networks can become quite large, and are often very easy to set up. If used properly by a tech-savvy person, such networks can be used to host temporary websites and chat rooms. There are many internet tutorials on the internet for ad hoc networking, so feel free to google some.

Apple computers tend to have very accessible ad hoc functionality built in, including a pre-installed chat client (iChat) that will automatically set up an ad hoc "Rendezvous" chatroom among anybody on the network, without the need for an external service like AIM or Skype. Ad hoc network-hosting functionality is built in to the Wi-Fi menu.

Windows computers have several third-party ad hoc chat applications available (such as Trillian) and setting up an ad hoc Wi-Fi network is almost as simple as on a Mac.

Linux operating systems, of course, have plenty of third-party apps available, and most distros have ad hoc network-creation support built in.
Get satellite access

You can have very, very slow internet if you have something similiar to an Iridium phone, which would allow you to do dial up at 2400 baud, which at least gives you e-mail. This will also work when your government has shut down GSM and telephone access, and will work pretty much anywhere on the planet. If you're in the right place, get yourself KA-SAT access (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KA-SAT) which is satellite broadband and will not be routed through any internet exchange that certain local governments may monitor or block (unless that government is part of EU or er ... Uncle Sam.
Packet Radio

Back to the '90s: There do exist shortwave packet-radio modems. These are also excruciatingly slow, but may get your e-mail out.
Back to Basics

Have an air horn or other loud instrument handy. It may just come down to being able to alert people in your local geographic area, who would otherwise be unaware of an emergency. You may also want to learn a bit about Morse code and have a cheat sheet available.
Additional Resources

The online activist group known as Anonymous has posted a crowd-sourced document titled "20 Ways to Circumvent the Egyptians Governments' Internet Block" that includes specific connectivity details like ham radio frequencies and ip addresses for social networking sites.
“Two is one, one is none”
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WillyPete

Re: How to Communicate if Federals Shut Down Internet

Post by WillyPete »

Not knowing how far the feds will go to block internet access, I can access the web with my cell phone. Not just by the cell phone but by using my phone as an ISP node and modem.
Sprint can do this, I don't know about other carriers. :cowboy:
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308gun

Re: How to Communicate if Federals Shut Down Internet

Post by 308gun »

if the government does a budget shut down , can they shut down all federal computers, and or also the complete internet ... any views on this ?????
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Re: How to Communicate if Federals Shut Down Internet

Post by Toepopper »

If the govt does shut down it will be for show only, to demonstrate the fact that they need more money and need to raise our taxes. I don't see them shutting down defence dept computers but they may shut down some less essential office computers or stop the social security direct deposit computers and printing presses. That would be the best way to impact the retirees and jolt them into thinking they should pay more in taxes. ( Or just making them MAD as heck)
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WillyPete

Re: How to Communicate if Federals Shut Down Internet

Post by WillyPete »

Right now, I'm not certain the feds can even attempt to shut down the internet, it doesn't have complete control of the web at present. Yet.
There may be likely some attempt at a scare tactic to "convince" people they need to give up more of their income and more of their liberty so that "Uncle Sugar" can take care of them.
Weren't there wars, protests and civil actions in our past fighting against just such an occurrence? Slavery that is. Why are so many people fighting so hard FOR slavery when many others, and their ancestors, fought so hard to STOP slavery?
I'll never understand the idiocy. :fiddle:
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308gun

Re: How to Communicate if Federals Shut Down Internet

Post by 308gun »

I am trying to think did they not have broken undersea cables that cut off the full internet to some area , that is telling me that some area's using telephone lines can be turned off complete , now the internet that comes from space , may be some turn off , I will also offer up this if you wanted complete control , a FULL CRASH of everything , even no mail , for processing work, orders, ETC. , also were not all state dept. heads for all countries called home , and oversea told to save cash of local country etc. I am trying too take a lot of little parts of the big to see what's coming ! We could see it HIT THE FAN IN WEEKS OR DAYS... or am i putting too much trust that O-BOY can destroy us NOW>>>..........that means no jobs, no money, no food, no police,no medical help, no one in control , that would be like living HELL , it would be a snow ball rolling down hill getting bigger, and all the shepple and drug heads lose control........WHAT DO YOU SEE ??????????
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Re: How to Communicate if Federals Shut Down Internet

Post by Toepopper »

I see the people in the big cities are going to be between a rock and a hard place. It will most likely start there first where as the country folk who have a full pantry and can fish, hunt or slaughter livestock for food will be in a much better position to survive whats coming. There are many more honest non druggy type people in this country and any violent crime by drug addicts against these people may spark a retaliatory response against the druggies and they could be wiped out. Wouldn't that be nice? :)
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Watchman
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Re: How to Communicate if Federals Shut Down Internet

Post by Watchman »

The only safe phones will be the satellite phones - roving gangs can't destroy the satellites like they can cell phone towers. I may be wrong on this point but I believe satellite telephony is something owned by the Chinee people through their Irridium satellite system. Human ingenuity will prevail.
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Re: How to Communicate if Federals Shut Down Internet

Post by Toepopper »

I was going to get one of those true satellite phones for my remote homestead about 15 years ago until I discovered that the monthly phone bill would be $785 per month. Thats when I went back to using 2 soup cans connected with a string. The technology is available if you are willing to pay out the big bucks.
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WillyPete

Re: How to Communicate if Federals Shut Down Internet

Post by WillyPete »

Yeah, aside from the ridiculous monthly connection charges for the satellite network, the calls themselves are extremely costly as well when you actually use the network. :shock:
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