The next global computer crash is predicted to occur in 2038

The reason is due to the way software is programmed to handle time information, so software that uses 32-bit integer coefficients to store time information will be affected.

In the 1970s, when programmers developing the first UNIX computer operating system decided to use 32-bit integers to measure time, starting from January 1, 1970. Many software and hardware have been integrated into this system.

However, a 32-bit integer number system can only store a maximum value of 2,147,483,647. So in 2,147,483,647 seconds after January 1, 1970, that is, on January 19, 2038, this value will be surpassed. All 32-bit systems can fall back to a value of 0, resulting in them defaulting to displaying the current time as 1970, if not corrected promptly.

According to Professor Jonathan Smith from the University of Pennsylvania's Department of Computer and Information Science, technically, fixing this error is not too difficult, but because the scope of impact is very large, it will take a lot of time.

This incident is said to have similarities with the "Y2K incident," a computer incident that occurred at the turn of the millennium (ie 1999 - 2000) because old computers were only used programmed to recognize the last two digits of the year, making it impossible to clearly distinguish between the years 2000 and 1900.

Micah Soto

Update 24 July 2024