PAKINFO360

For the second time last month, Syria went dark. According to NBC News, the g!obaI Internet tracking firm Renesys confirmed the outage began at 10 AM in Syria, which is indicated on Google's Transparency report as •vell. "Ever since the top of the hour we have not been able to get any measurements to any of the machines that normally respond in Syria: James Cowie, of Renesys. told NBC News. After an 8- hour and 25-minute break, the firm saw signs that phone lines and Internet activity returned.

This was Syria's second Internet blackout last month, following a 19-hour blackout that began on May 7. The outage pattern during that event was "very similar" to today's data, Cowie said. it takes place very quickly, as if a switch was being thrown". So far, the data does not confirm a cause for the outage, though Cowie explains that a partial outage, caused by Ovum, damage to a cable, has a different data signature. Syria has less than three inten1111 service providers, fewer than most countrillt which makes it particularly vulnerable to outages. politically driven or otherwise.