The 'global blackout of November 17' is a US radio and television emergency alert test

Messages are circulating on social media claiming that on November 17, 2026 there will be a global cyberattack causing a blackout, with banks out of money, ATMs switched off and the internet down, and urging people to stockpile food, water and cash. According to Maldita.es, which published its check on November 13, there is no evidence that a blackout will happen that day, whether from a cyberattack or for any other reason.

According to Maldita.es, this content stems from a drill that the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold that day. It will not be a blackout, but the broadcast of a message in English and Spanish on radio and television stations in the United States.

The FCC announced the test in a public notice dated September 16. According to that document, FEMA will transmit the nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) on November 17 at 2:20 p.m. Eastern Time (20:20 in peninsular Spain), through its integrated alert system IPAWS. If conditions require it to be postponed, it will be held on December 3.

The text of the message, according to the FCC, will say it is a nationwide test of the alert system issued by FEMA, covering the United States, and that no action is required by the public. The test applies only to the US stations and systems required to take part, which must then report their results to the FCC.