The DDOS Attacks — Could Astrology Have Predicted Them?

Last Friday, the internet went down.

That’s a bit of exaggeration, but a number of popular sites, including Twitter, Spotify, Shopify, and Github, were affected by rolling waves of DDOS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks against one of the main DNS providers for the US. (If you are interested in more information about DDOS attacks and how this one happened, see this TechCrunch article.)

As a consultant deeply involved with websites and and website security, I followed the events and am continuing to follow any additional news about how the attack was orchestrated and who might be behind it.

As an astrologer, I was curious about whether the planetary positions at the time the attacks began could show us anything about the occurrence. Could the chart of the day have predicted this attack?

This is the chart for 11:10 UT (7:10 am Eastern time, 4:10 am Pacific time) on Friday, October 21, the time when the first attacks began. (Click the image for larger version of the chart.)

The thing that immediately jumps out at me is Mars closely conjoining Pluto in the third house of the chart (yellow highlight, near bottom).

The third house rules communications of all sorts. Mars, the god of war, refers to attacks, disagreements, battles of all kinds. Pluto, the god of the underworld, rules things that are hidden from view. Secrets. Transformative power. Mars and Pluto are in Capricorn (decisive action, victory).

So the setup was definitely in place for an attack of this sort!

But did the planets “predict” the DDOS attack, as at least one astrologer has claimed? No. They indicated that it was quite likely that some sort of attack/disagreement/angry blowup would occur within the period from October 13 – 26, when Mars was moving closer to, conjoining, and moving away from Pluto.

But this conjunction could also mean an argument with your spouse, your boss, or even a Facebook group splitting up over a hidden (Pluto) exercise of power (Mars). Interpretation is always easier after the fact!

Cyber attacks like these will continue after the 13-day Mars/Pluto conjunction. The more that Internet-connected devices multiply, the more they are purchased and put into use by ordinary people who know and care little about cyber security, the more likely a similar future attack becomes, regardless of where the planets are in the sky.

Secure your devices, understand what is happening in these attacks, and where possible, avoid connecting insecure devices to the internet.

Watch the sky — or read these AstroNotes — for indications of periods of trouble, but don’t expect specific predictions of specific events.