As we rely more and more on wireless accessories, wired gadgets are generally more reliable than wireless devices – or at the very least, they offer faster data communication speeds. This logic applies to international communications: the majority of Internet traffic between continents relies on undersea cables. So when a cable gets damaged, people start to worry.
Earlier this week, two undersea cables that connect Australia to the rest of the global internet experienced “shunt faults” (a short circuit caused by damaged cable insulation). The CEO of the company that manages these cables, Subco, posted on LinkedIn that the cables were “in close proximity to each other” and that the faults occurred within a short period of time. Despite being a sovereign nation, Australia’s economy relies heavily on its ability to connect to the rest of the internet – like every other country in the world – and any disruption could prove catastrophic. As Australia’s internet travels via 16 undersea cables, the circumstances behind the damage were highly suspicious.
At the time of the shunt faults, Subco detected “suspicious/coincidental vessel activity.” This information fueled the theory that the damage was intentional, perhaps terroristic. Dr David Brewster, a senior research fellow at the National Security College at the Australian National University, cited similar attacks over the past four years to support the claim. He doesn’t know who cut the cables, or if anyone did, but he said that, as with previous cable attacks, countries like Russia or China would be the most likely suspects.
Who owns Australia’s underwater internet cables?
In fairness, shunt faults are a fairly common occurrence, as these underwater internet cables are easily cut. An errant ship’s anchor can crack insulation, and sharks have been known to bite underwater cables and test whether they are edible (sharks hunt by following magnetic fields, and these cables are veritable Roman candles of magnetic activity). However, once a cable is damaged, whether from an intentional attack or an accident, bureaucracy can hamper repairs.
Although the shunted cables are located in Australian waters – specifically in an area known as the “cable protection zone” – not all lines placed there are owned by the Australian government. According to Dr. Brewster, many of these cables are actually owned by American tech giants, including Meta, Google and Amazon. And even when a cable is 100% Australian owned, ownership and responsibilities are never clear-cut. Although Subco is on paper the owner of the damaged cables, Dr. Brewster clarified that no government agency was responsible. These metaphorical monkey wrenches make it nearly impossible to determine who should take responsibility or repair physical damage.
At the time of writing, those involved in the investigation are assuming that the shunt defect was an act of deliberate sabotage. According to an email from the Australian Federal Police received by Tom’s Hardware, officials are still reviewing all information and will comment on the situation as soon as they can.
