Taiwan will intentionally reduce mobile internet speeds next month as part of its annual civil defence drills, government officials announced, aiming to simulate how citizens might communicate during emergencies when bandwidth is limited. The planned 30-minute slowdown will affect high-bandwidth services such as video calls, streaming, and social media, and will take place across 14 cities and counties in northern and central Taiwan, regions that together account for approximately 70% of the island’s population.

The scheduled exercises are designed to strengthen preparedness amid increasing military pressure from China, which has escalated activities around Taiwan in recent years. Officials emphasized that the drills will test public response to various scenarios, including natural disasters, blockades, cyberattacks, or a potential invasion. The measures are part of a broader initiative to enhance overall resilience in communications during crises.

“We hope the drills will not only involve central government agencies, but also help the public strengthen their own preparations for using different communication methods,” a senior security official said. Key infrastructure services such as ATMs, traffic signals, and emergency calls will remain fully operational during the internet slowdown.

This drill will coincide with Taiwan’s traditional air-raid exercises, with the central region scheduled for communication restrictions on August 10 and the northern region on August 13. Authorities have called on the public to consider alternative communication options and to anticipate potential disruptions during the planned throttling period.

Taipei's focus on communications resilience follows a series of undersea cable breaks in recent years that have highlighted Taiwan’s vulnerability to network disruptions, which could result not only from natural causes but also from deliberate sabotage or China’s “grey-zone” tactics. Beijing claims sovereignty over Taiwan and has not ruled out the use of force to bring the island under its control. Taiwan, which operates as a democratic government, firmly rejects these claims.

The drills underscore growing concerns in Taiwan over the security of critical infrastructure and the need to maintain public communication channels in times of crisis, reflecting heightened tensions in the region and the island’s efforts to prepare for a range of emergency scenarios.