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- The HEIST project aims to mitigate the physical sabotage of submarine cables
- HEIST is expected to use laser optics rather than radio
- Exabytes of data flow in more than 1 million Km of fiber around the globe
NATO is to develop a satellite-based backup for global Internet communications to address vulnerabilities exposed by recent undersea cable outages.
The project, known as HEIST (hybrid space-submarine architecture that ensures telecommunications infosec), comes in response to the February 2024 incident when the cargo ship Rubymar, hit by a Houthi missile attack, dragged the still across the Red Sea floor, severing three. fiber optic cables.
A report from IEEE spectrum claims that these cables carried about a quarter of all Internet traffic between Europe and Asia, forcing the redirection of data and highlighting the fragile nature of the global Internet infrastructure.
Ready for testing
More than 95% of intercontinental Internet traffic relies on submarine fiber optic cables, with more than 1.2 million kilometers of them stretching across the planet. These thin cables lie buried in the seabed, making them vulnerable to accidental damage and sabotage.
The Rubymar incident was not intentional, but Western officials have evidence of deliberate submarine cable sabotage by state actorssuch as Russia and China. NATO has already announced plans to prevent this from happening in the future using underwater drones.
HEIST aims to address such threats by ensuring that critical Internet paths remain operational even when fiber lines are compromised.
The project has two key goals: quickly detect cable damage and precisely locate breaks, and expand the ability to redirect data through alternative channels, including satellites. The focus will be on diverting high-priority data to satellites, reducing reliance on vulnerable undersea cables.
The project will begin testing in 2025 at the Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden. Researchers from several countries, including the United States, Sweden, Iceland and Switzerland, will work to develop faster break detection systems capable of pinpointing damage to within a meter.
Researchers have also explored satellite-based failsafes using higher-bandwidth laser optics, which can transmit much more data than current radio-based satellite systems.
While satellite throughput is limited compared to fiber, the HEIST team is focusing on expanding bandwidth through technologies such as infrared lasers, already in use on Starlink satellites.
Although no single solution exists, NATO’s goal is to create a diverse and resilient network, ensuring secure global communications in emergencies.
