Senators seek Biden administration review of undersea cable vulnerabilities

Source: Reuters

October 21, 2024 6:41 PM EDT Updated 12 hours ago


Oct 21 (Reuters) - A bipartisan group of eight U.S. senators on Monday urged President Joe Biden to order a review of the security of the global network of undersea communications cables that handle nearly all the world's internet traffic. Nearly all international internet traffic travels on undersea cables and the locations of the cables are often openly published to prevent accidental damage.

"It is imperative that the United States undertake a review of existing vulnerabilities to global undersea cable infrastructure, including the threat of sabotage by Russia as well as the growing role of the People’s Republic of China in cable laying and repair," said the letter, led by Republican Todd Young and Democrat Chris Murphy.

The United States for years has expressed concerns about China’s role in handling network traffic and potential for espionage.
More than 400 subsea cables form the backbone of the internet, carrying more than 95% of the world’s data traffic.

In 2020, Federal Communications Commissioner Geoffrey Starks said the agency "must ensure that adversary countries and other hostile actors can’t tamper with, block, or intercept the communications they carry."

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/us/senators-want-biden-administration-review-undersea-cable-vulnerabilities-2024-10-21/