- The subsea cables that underpin the internet are at risk of Russian attack.
- The West is seeking to defend the cables, but it’s a tough task.
- NATO has a backup plan — to reroute some data through space.
For decades, a vast network of largely undefended subsea cables has underpinned the internet. It’s looking more and more vulnerable.
A series of recent mysterious cases of cables severed in the Baltic Sea, blamed by Western officials on Russian sabotage, has highlighted their exposure to attack.
On Christmas Day, a Baltic undersea power cable and several telecommunications cables were severed underscoring the threat.
Officials in Finland are investigating a Russia-linked tanker, that they say may have severed the cables by dragging its anchor for dozens of miles across the seabed.
The incidents have sparked a race to safeguard the infrastructure, whose security many analysts say has been neglected.
Planning a HEIST
At the forefront is a NATO-funded project: the Hybrid Space/Submarine Architecture Ensuring Information Security of Telecommunications, or HEIST.
The initial test project is due to cost some $2 million, including $400,000 from NATO. It is being developed by academics alongside the satellite broadband firms Viasat and SpaceX.
If tests are successful, countries and companies would then buy into the network to fund a much wider rollout.
‘Redefine the backbone of the internet’
The core idea is simple: To use satellites to transmit some data, making the West less reliant on undersea cables.
“Our ultimate ambition is to redefine the backbone of the internet,” said Gregory Falco, an engineering professor at Cornell University working on HEIST.
“Instead of requiring all of our data to flow through subsea cables (of which 95% of the internet is reliant on) we would like to enable an ecosystem of options,” he said.
“While one may argue that submarine communication cables are very efficient, they are not very resilient to natural or human-made threats.”
“Overall, any measures to increase the resilience of our communications architecture is fundamentally needed. The multilayered approach of the HEIST program is a good start,” Melanie Garson, Associate Professor in Conflict Resolution & International Security at University College London told BI.
Backup and deterrent
The plan works by fitting existing cables with sensors to detect disruptions, either from sabotage or natural events and accidents.
In an outage, they would automatically re-route the data via a network of satellites.
It could act as a deterrent, giving hostile vessels less incentive to approach the cables in the first place.
Falco said the tech would be tested in January. From there, the plan is to have “end-to-end functional capability” by December 2026, he said.
Sybille Reuter via Getty images
SpaceX already has its vast network of Starlink satellites beaming internet around the world to commercial customers and some militaries. But the service doesn’t feature the rerouting concept HEIST is investigating.
Neither SpaceX or Viasat responded to requests for comment from Business Insider.
The threat to the cables is intensifying
In the meantime, Russia poses a threat to the cables, and has a motive to damage them.
Russia, analysts say, could seek to punish the West for its support for Ukraine by targeting crucial infrastructure like the cables.
Business Insider in August reported that a secret Russian undersea sabotage unit, the GUGI, had been surveilling the cables, which analysts warned that the West is ill-equipped to defend.
Space is dangerous, too
Though having two methods is better than one, satellites are hardly immune from disruption themselves.
Space weather events and collisions with debris (including manmade “space junk”) can damage satellites — as well as attacks by rival powers like China.
Russia, for its part, would likely target satellites if direct fighting were ever to break out between it and the US, experts have warned.
In response, the race is on to defend satellite systems as well, with the Pentagon seeking to employ anti-jamming technology should they come under attack.
Falco told BI a key part of the HEIST project ensuring the backup satellites themselves were secure, too.
Priorities
And there are formidable technical challenges.
A combination of satellites and subsea cables has long been used for communicating highly sensitive data. However, figuring out how to reroute the data is a challenge on a different scale.
Falco said that, at first, HEIST would need to focus on the highest-priority data because it would be impossible to transfer everything.
Another computer science expert working on HEIST, Professor Henric Johnson of the Blekinge Institute of Technology, agreed that the challenge was substantial.
He cited the complexity of integrating the technology into existing infrastructure while staying ahead of quickly evolving threats.
“Adversaries are continuously developing new attack vectors, such as exploiting supply chain weaknesses or leveraging advanced AI tools, which require ongoing updates and refinements to the system,” he said.
Johnson said that HEIST shouldn’t be seen as a quick fix but as part of an ongoing process to secure Western infrastructure.
“It’s important to acknowledge that security is a continuous process. HEIST is not a one-time solution but part of an evolving strategy to adapt to emerging risks,” he said.
NATO did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.
