What is a Unix Timestamp?
The Unix Timestamp (also known as Epoch time) allows computers to track time as a running total of seconds. Specifically, it counts the number of seconds that have elapsed since January 1, 1970 (00:00:00 UTC).
Developers use it because it makes calculating time differences easy—just subtract one number from another. It works universally across all time zones because it is always based on UTC.
The "Year 2038" Problem
Legacy systems stored this timestamp as a 32-bit integer. On January 19, 2038, the number of seconds will exceed the maximum value a 32-bit system can hold, potentially causing crashes (similar to the Y2K bug). Modern 64-bit systems have already solved this.