Are We Headed for an Internet Drought?

First they came for your toilet paper. Next might be your internets.

We’ve all been laughing at the posts online about stupid people buying up all the toilet paper because of the Coronavirus. ‘Your IQ is 150, minus however many toilet rolls you’ve bought’, one joke on Twitter said. I had 4 in my bathroom at the time, so this left me feeling pretty good about myself.

Well, soon enough I had to go to the shop to buy more toilet paper because 4 rolls dwindled to 3, and then 2, and then 1. When I got to the shop, none were left, nor in the shop next to it. Who’s stupid now, I thought. (And, by the way: if I had seen toilet rolls, I probably would’ve been tempted to buy more than I really needed).

There’s an odd feeling in the air. The uncertainty caused by the coronavirus is making people plan ahead and look after their own interests — which is perfectly natural. But this, combined with actually seeing excessive stockpiling in shops with your own eyes, is spreading a kind of hysteria which may soon lead to various shortages.

But the next one might hit you where it really hurts — your Internet connection.

People are staying at home at an absolutely unprecedented rate due to government-imposed quarantines or advice to self-isolate. Several companies and institutions have closed their doors and are asking their employees to work from home (including me).

It is not hard to imagine the additional strain this will be putting on our network infrastructure, which may not be up to the task.

This morning (16 March) and over the weekend, there have been announcements by Internet Service Providers and several governments about providing adequate bandwidth for people to work from home.

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