Are We Ignoring the Cybersecurity Risks of Undersea Internet Cables?

Toppled power lines catalyze fires and electrical injuries amid an already upsetting hurricane. Natural disaster recovery is expensive and time-consuming, as its ferocity makes operations more complex. The time for resilient, modern infrastructure is now and that is visible in the planet’s extensive network of underwater cables.

However, critical fixtures like these are prime targets for cybercriminals because of how much data travels through them. Are humans doing enough to safeguard them?

The Importance of Undersea Internet Cables

Undersea cables are as subtle as they can be despite spanning 1.4 million kilometers worldwide. They are small in diameter and house impressively thin wires despite the immense pressures and climate of the deep ocean. Visualizing how much they impact the world’s day-to-day operations is challenging. However, they are deceptively critical for our productive, communicative planet, sending up to 224 Tbps (terabits per second).

Global Connectivity

An estimated 97% of Earth’s information passes through hundreds of fiber-optic undersea cables. Disrupting this much communication and data transfer with careless cable management and security could uproot societies.

The subsea infrastructure map describes international relations and what regions are responsible for the most information distribution and retrieval. Because this information is public, it’s straightforward for criminal syndicates to craft a profitable project.

Economic Impact

Nations connected to these cables have a more impressive global reach, signifying international economic prominence, expansion, and urban development. Unfortunately, cybersecurity breaches are expensive to isolate and recoup from, and prices balloon yearly.

Critical infrastructure compromises have a price tag higher than any other type of breach, averaging around $5 million per instance. This is a culmination of essential businesses shutting down and becoming inoperable, labor required to contain the threat, and resources necessary to put everything back online and salvage extricated data.

Technological Advancements

Submarine cables are one of the backbones of digital transformation and tech development. These were critical in expanding 5G and the Internet of Things because they deliver high-speed, low-latency connections to every area. The robust infrastructure makes communities more efficient and convenient, but its surface area means more entry points and potential vulnerabilities for hackers.

Physical Threats to Undersea Cables

Cybersecurity risks are not all hidden within the digital ether — physical threats accompany those efforts. How do they appear and how can the world defend against them?

Natural Disasters and Wildlife

Seismic activity and oceanic storms threaten cable sturdiness. Additionally, sharks and other marine life add more stress. Severed cables leave gaps for hackers to tinker and fix the wires to work for them.

Advocating for regulation to standardize the usage of strong materials that do not degrade under sand and water is necessary for keeping them out of harm’s way. Additionally, endorsing any legislation to reduce climate change impacts indirectly supports subsea cable health.

Human Activities

Consider how a heavy anchor could cut or smash an old cable. Threat actors are just as capable of this type of physical destruction to cyber infrastructure as they are of executing it within digital landscapes. Other destructive activities include drilling or fishing. Additionally, nation-state sabotage is not unheard of and could permeate any commercial industry with financially-susceptible interests.

Aging Infrastructure

New cables may hit ocean floors, but this does not mean old ones are getting the upgrade they need. Additionally, many of the most critical wires are in clumps, making it easier to attack a lot at once. Updates should include redistributing chokepoints for less concentrated attack surfaces.

Even amateur hackers know antiquated technology stops receiving support, meaning vulnerabilities abound. Undersea transmission must be able to receive ongoing patches and updates to withstand novel threat variants.

Cyber Threats to Undersea Cables

The attacks within digital spaces are arguably more destructive. These are the most notable threat variants and ways humanity should protect cables.

Wiretapping

Tapping undersea cables has been happening since the First World War, demonstrating the literal leagues people will go to impede and damage communications and information. This can happen by going underwater or tapping it from a landing station.

DDoS Attacks

Interrupting internet connections is a lucrative venture, primarily when essential services like finance and health care rely on connectivity just as much as everyone else. Overwhelming submarine cables are an obvious way to extend the outage duration because remediation takes so long.

Data Interception

Instead of destroying or bombarding cables, why not place a small bug to capture bytes of sensitive data? Disrupting signals allows criminals to receive immediate information while redirecting or obstructing communication — a popular option for espionage.

Surveillance threats are harder to catch, making them enticing to criminal outfits. Intercepting data may also occur through social engineering, such as manipulating an official to steal credentials to access subsea wire operating systems.

Protection of Undersea Cables

Dedicated upkeep makes these techniques viable for the long term. Next-generation remote monitoring and maintenance systems will be quintessential for identifying threat attempts, detecting backdoors, submitting updates, and gathering data. This calls for upgraded inventory management systems to cut costs and improve efficiency, as well as coordinate and record each cable with greater visibility.

Education on physical and digital threats is vital for forging plans to make undersea cables secure. The International Cable Protection Committee is an example of the degree of commitment the planet needs. They submit calls to action from the most powerful entities, including recent events like the compromises in the Red Sea involving hard-to-access, damaged cables.

Generally, international laws need to be more holistic to deliver the coverage undersea cables demand. Writing contingency plans, filling out regulatory gaps, and completing more risk assessments require dedicated research into the resilience and distribution of the wires. This knowledge is limited, publicly unavailable or hard to access.

Advanced encryption and security measures based on the most up-to-date compliance frameworks ensure the industry’s best knowledge shields these cables. More digital and physical walls equate to better data integrity. Authorities must get into the habit of consulting with leaders like the ICPC and related organizations for informed guidance. This includes discussing industry threats and thoughtful operations execution with businesses like fisheries.

Out of Sight, Out of Mind

Ignoring the power and value of submarine cables allows their data and influence to fall into the hands of cybercriminals. More comprehensive and strict protective measures are crucial for withstanding the modern hacker’s constantly developing and subversive tactics. Global connectivity and sustainable development mandate it, which only happens with collaboration and awareness of how essential underwater infrastructure is.