Concern about infrastructure

China has an advantage in the battle for undersea cables

Technology sanctions, blacklists, bans: The relationship between the USA and China is more tense than it has been for decades, and with the return of Donald Trump it is unlikely to get any better. If there were to be a conflict, the submarine internet cables on the seabed would be a high-value target for sabotage and espionage - which is currently not adequately protected.

This is the conclusion reached by the US think tank CSIS (Center for Strategic & International Studies), which has published a new report detailing the cyber security situation on the seabed. In particular, it sheds light on why the valuable internet lifelines at the bottom of the oceans threaten to become a target for Russian sabotage and leverage for China in a conflict between the superpowers. Krone+ explains why the internet cables are so interesting for the major powers, how they run and who protects them.