Many AT&T customers got a taste of the apocalypse yesterday

For a few hours yesterday morning, tens of thousands of AT&T customers across the US experienced a total cellular blackout that disrupted calls, texts, and emergency services, and also provided at least some taste of the confusion that would accompany an apocalyptic alien invasion.

• A spike in outages began around 4:00 am ET and peaked at around 8:30 am ET, according to Downdetector. AT&T said the issue was likely caused by a process error, not a cyberattack.

How do cell networks function?... In essence, cell phones are radios. When you speak into a phone on a call, your voice is converted into a signal that’s transmitted via radio wave to a nearby cell tower. The cell tower then relays the radio wave back to the person you’re speaking to, converting it first to a signal and then back to sound again.

• 4G and 5G wireless networks (aka cellular WiFi/internet) work the same as above👆, except with data instead of your voice. Each network iteration (ex: 3G → 4G → 5G) has allowed for a greater quantity of data to be transferred at quicker speeds – meaning TikTok would’ve been tough to pull off in the 3G-era.

Beyoncé’s gone country, America’s gone wireless. As of late 2022, an estimated 73% of adults and 82% of children lived in homes with only wireless phone services. But landline owners may get the last laugh. Many AT&T phones affected by yesterday's outage were still able to dial 911 by piggybacking off other carrier’s networks, however, in the case of a total cellular blackout, landline owners would be the only ones still be able to make emergency 911 calls.