[118629] in Cypherpunks
"computer failure" => impounded cars
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Anonymous)
Mon Oct 4 13:09:55 1999
Date: Mon, 4 Oct 1999 18:40:31 +0200 (CEST)
Message-Id: <199910041640.SAA17418@mail.replay.com>
From: Anonymous <nobody@replay.com>
To: cypherpunks@algebra.com
Reply-To: Anonymous <nobody@replay.com>
A few drivers in different parts of the state
suffered the indignity of having their cars
impounded because computer records about their
license got swallowed in cyberspace.
And of course, there would be no one to sue for the 'indignity'...
http://www.latimes.com/HOME/NEWS/STATE/topstory.html
...........
SACRAMENTO--In an unwelcome preview of
what a Y2K meltdown could be like, massive
computer crashes have repeatedly forced agencies
throughout California to turn away customers for
driver's licenses, food vouchers and other services.
The Highway Patrol suddenly had difficulty
checking criminal records. Child Protective
Services could not get quick access to abuse files.
For two days Glendale's Department of Motor
Vehicles office had to process driver's license
renewals manually. And one consulting firm
clocked 19,000 minutes of intermittent outages--an
eternity in the fast-paced world of computer
technology--from January to July.
"This has been a lot worse than anything we
expect from Y2K," said Elias S. Cortez, the state's
chief information officer.
But the problem, which state officials fear may
be ongoing, is not another botched computer
project. It is the phone company.
Pacific Bell, hired by the state to ferry its data
records across the high-speed telephone lines, is
governed by a corporate culture so steeped in voice
communication, state officials say, that it has had
difficulty adjusting to the demands of a
sophisticated data network. And they--and their
consultants--question whether the company will
ever be able to reinvent itself enough to adequately
manage state data communications over the long
term.
Company officials insist PacBell is a leader in
data communications and has vastly improved its
service in recent weeks, although they admit that
the company has not measured up.
"We didn't provide the quality of service that
[the state] expected of us or that we expected of
ourselves," said Doug Michelman, a Pacific Bell
vice president.
Hardest hit has been the agency motorists love
to hate, the DMV, which has been struggling to
correct a public image of indifference and
inefficiency. The outages have been "devastating to
customer service," according to an internal report.
And once computer service is restored, "the lines
of customers are staggering."
For many customers, the nettlesome task of
renewing driver's licenses or transferring auto
registration became an ordeal. Some DMV offices
called in fire marshals to control the crowds.
Others closed early and turned customers away.
cont'd
