Year 2000 problem
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The Year 2000 problem (also known as the Y2K problem, the millennium bug, and the Y2K Bug) was a problem that happened because of the way in which some early computer programs were designed. They were designed to handle only two-digit years, which sparked fears that date-related processing would operate incorrectly for dates and times on and after January 1 2000. It caused widespread concern that very important industries (such as electricity or financial) and government functions would stop operating at exactly midnight, January 1 2000, and on other critical dates which were billed as "event horizons". More people were panicked by press coverage and other media speculation, as well as corporate and government reports. Companies and organisations around the world had to check and upgrade their computer systems. The preparation for Y2K thus had a significant effect on the computer industry. No significant computer failures occurred when the clocks rolled over into 2000. Debate continues on whether the absence of computer failures was the result of the preparation undertaken or whether the significance of the problem had been overstated.