Submarine Cables Need Better Monitoring, Consultant Says

The world's submarine cable infrastructure needs proactive monitoring or sensing tools, consultant Kim Kyllesbech Larsen wrote Tuesday. More than 95% of international internet and data traffic crosses subsea cables, "but these critical assets lie largely unguarded on the ocean floor," Larsen said. Sensing technologies could help detect and characterize disturbances to cables, as well as real-time threat classification, he said. Those sensing capabilities "can serve as a digital tripwire along the seabed, transforming our ability to monitor and defend strategic infrastructure."