More than 97 per cent of the world's communications are transmitted through sub sea optical fibre cables surrounded by armouring wire and a Polyethylene cover
Atlantic Council: Cord-cutting, Russian style: Could the Kremlin sever global internet cables?
As the world watches the Kremlin’s military build-up along the Ukrainian border, the Irish military is worried about Russian naval activity in its own backyard. That’s where Russian exercises are set to take place dangerously close to strategic undersea communications cables that represent an overlooked element of a potential Russian escalation: an effort to blind the world to events unfolding in Ukraine.
Armed with a sophisticated set of cyber capabilities, the Russian government has long relied—even compared to a cyber power like China—on destructive attacks that degrade or destroy systems, such as the one that shut off power grids in Ukraine in 2015. Not to mention the large network of actors, from state agencies to front companies to recruited cybercriminals, who conduct a range of cyber and information operations against the Putin regime’s enemies. But Russia’s weaponization of tech isn’t just about code and keyboards: If attackers can damage, destroy, or merely cut power to physical internet infrastructure, such as undersea cables, they can disrupt internet communications in a target area to cause public panic and unrest, undermine economic activity, and disrupt the flow of government and citizen communications.
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WNU Editor: Talk of Russia cutting undersea cables has been making the news rounds for the past month .... Undersea Cable Connecting Norway With Arctic Satellite Station Has Been Mysteriously Severed (January 11, 2022).
This is nasty stuff. There must be certain reprisals we could resort to make life as difficult in Russia as it would be here if they cut undersea cables. The main problem might be proving they were the ones responsible, although we'd probably have a pretty good idea depending on the depth of the line, how it was cut, etc.
ReplyDeleteQuestion: ELI5: How do the underwater internet cables going across continents not snap to plate tectonics or by being suspended across oceanic ridges?
ReplyDeleteAnswer: The cables are not that tight. They're more like an extension cord lying across the yard. Lots of slack. In fact, if they have to do repairs, they snag the cable with hooks and haul it to the surface. There's plenty of slack.
If a cable goes dead it is probably Russian enemy action.
SOSUS cables & a cable connecting Norway to an island have already been cut by suspect(s) unknown recently. Obviously dummy runs & warnings to NATO. Keep ducking 🙈
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