[AusNOG] EFPOST terminals down

[Scott Howard]

How does that imply it's not robust?

100% of all Mastercard transactions in Australia used to go via a single
server (and for all I know, still do).  But there was redundancy upon
redundancy (including failover to multiple other systems in different
locations) in the event that something went wrong...

  Scott



On Sun, Jun 21, 2020 at 8:15 PM Jason Xiros <jason.xiros at gmail.com> wrote:

>
> I'm not sure the EFTPOS network is as robust as people believe. There was
> a time perhaps seven or eight years ago when 50% (or more) of all
> transactions in Australia went through a single data centre on the Pacific
> Hwy in North Sydney.
>
>
> Kind regards,
>
> Jason
>
>
>
> >
> > Date: Mon, 22 Jun 2020 09:06:36 +0930
> > From: John Edwards <jaedwards at gmail.com>
> > To: Chris Hurley <chris at dragonrail.com.au>
> > Cc: "<ausnog at lists.ausnog.net>" <ausnog at lists.ausnog.net>
> > Subject: Re: [AusNOG] EFPOST terminals down
> > Message-ID:
> >       <CAOSsYkr=
> 19BQ+qNjSaDuVUVDuctOyd0qg3z5PLhvdHdCLvOy0A at mail.gmail.com>
> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
> >
> > Tips are low priority areas for mobile coverage. They are deliberately
> > built where no-one else is, such that they would account for the majority
> > of an expensive mobile sector.
> >
> > I imagine that most EFTPOS terminals are still 3G. If 3G failed, most of
> us
> > with a smartphone less than 5 years old wouldn't notice.
> >
> > So if there's a 3G network failure:
> >
> >   - Terminals would usually migrate to another cell, there are probably
> >   not multiple cells covering a tip
> >   - There is still LTE coverage there, so no customers are screaming for
> >   the failure to be fixed
> >   - The network is aging so failure is common
> >   - Parts are hard to get or expensive because its old
> >   - Social Distancing is mutually exclusive to how teams of mobile
> network
> >   riggers normally operate, so there's a backlog of faults
> >   - Coverage of a tip with a handful of regular customers is low priority
> >   for a fix, no manager is escalating this over other faults
> >   - Some WFH people nearby are smashing the local 3G network with their
> >   old USB 3G adapters that are now on an unlimited download plan
> >
> > In summary, it's probably not a cyberattack.
> >
> > John
> >
> >
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