Pieter-Jaap Aalbersberg, the National Co-ordinator for Counterterrorism and Security (NCTV), has warned the Dutch they need to be better prepared for blackouts.
After the global tech outage on July 19 that appeared to stem from a failed update between Microsoft and global cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, hospitals, airports, public transport and a host of other sectors were severely disrupted.
In an increasingly digital and tech-dominated world, such outages could have even more disastrous consequences, said Aalbersberg.
He told Dutch public broadcaster NOS that water treatment, electricity and payment services among others could also be rendered inoperable by such technical issues and warned that the general Dutch population needed to be prepared for such.
“Imagine all power goes out and it’s pitch black, what do you do then? Do you have an emergency kit with candles, water, batteries, and cash? These precautions ensure that you’re more resilient,” Aalbersberg said.
“Additionally, consider what you depend on and check if you’d be in trouble if you couldn’t leave the house or go shopping for a while.”
The NCTV advised people to seriously consider possible tech blackouts so that, for example, they would be aware of who might need care, or neighbours who could need extra support in case of such a crisis.
The body stated that while the Netherlands as a country had invested heavily in protecting its digital systems it must also focus on back-up plans in case of emergency.
“The threat is increasing, especially with all the current conflicts, and attacks on digital systems are becoming more real. Last week’s outage was a wake-up call – we truly need to become more resilient,” it said.
“This doesn’t mean preventing incidents altogether, but rather ensuring that society can continue to function when they occur.'”
Red Cross spokeswoman Nicole van Batenburg had a similar message for the Dutch population. “We tend to think they [blackouts] are not our problem, but last week proved otherwise.”
She told NOS it was relatively easy to prepare properly for such a disruption. “Write down phone numbers, make copies of your important documents and, of course, make sure you have that emergency kit and enough water. In a flood, for example, drinking water gets contaminated,” van Batenburg said.
Microsoft has blamed the European Union for a global IT outage it has said affected 8.5 million Windows devices. https://t.co/GF8nD9wp1U
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) July 24, 2024
