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NSA/U.S. Navy Working to Intercept Fiber Optic Cables
Jeff Robertson writes: "Fiber optic cables have advantage of being difficult to wiretap. As optical amplifiers replace electro-optical regenerators in undersea routes, it gets even harder. Lightwave Magazine has an article
quoting the Washington Post as claiming the
National Security Agency 'is known to be hard at work trying to gain access to fiber optic cables' and the U.S. Navy will spend '$1 billion to retrofit its premier spy submarine, the USS Jimmy Carter' to get access to deep-sea fiber routes.
They also assert that the U.S. government is bailing out Global Crossing to prevent its undersea routes falling into foreign hands."
Does anyone else find it hilarious that the top of the line super advanced submarine is named for Jimmy Carter?
U.S. Navy will spend '$1 billion to retrofit its premier spy submarine, the USS Jimmy Carter' to get access to deep-sea fiber routes.
Every time the trans-Atlantic connections are down they give us this same line about the "sharks who like to chew on cables", and all the while it has been a bunch of Navy SEALs trying to patch an optical wiretap, equipped with a combat knife and a legth of wire?
"I have opinions of my own, strong opinions, but I don't always agree with them." -- George H. W. Bush
One more excuse from your ISP:
"What, you going to tell me your backbone took a backhoe?"
"No, it was run into by a super-secret spy subm--."
It's ironic that the article talks about terrorists using these things, so they need to tap fiber. Hasn't it become clear from the news of the last week or so that the FBI, CIA, etc. have plenty of information, they just don't know how to use it?
Protect the BGP peering relationships! By god, man that Exchange point sailor! Don't drop any packets until you see the whites of their eyes!
Global Crossing's global route table is only the first step, next thing you know the Chinese will be invading PAIX and coked-up narco-columbians will be running rampant at the MAEs!
This could be the start of a trend in sub naming. If the NSA named their sub the Jimmy Carter because of carter's service on a sub, maybe they could continue this practice of naming ships after presidential habits. Think of the possibilities?
USS Bill Clinton : The boat never seems to work quite the way everyone wants it too, and its outer hull is exceptionally slick. Easy to Catch, but tough to prove it really did something wrong.
USS Willaim Howard Taft : Big, unwieldy, Just kind of sits there and looks odd.
USS George Bush : Another spy ship along the lines of the Bill Clinton. A mistake in the shipyard causes the orders to say one thing and do another. Open switches close valves, and vice versa. Expected service life is only half that of a normal ship. Recently underwent minor modifications and re-entered service under the Name USS George W. Bush
USS Ronald Regan : Essentially useless as a spy ship as it sufffers continual memory errors. Those who served on the Regan however continue to tout the ship as the greatest ship in the inventory, asking monuments to it be built, and crediting the ship with single handedly winning every war since korea. the rest of the navy just rolls their eyes while waiting for it to be mothballed
USS Gerald Ford : Pressed into service after the scrapping of the USS Richard Nixon (removed from service after being too effective), The Ford has suffered from no less than 18 dry dock accidents, mostly relating to the ship rolling off the pillars used to support it.
There are some people that if they don't know, you can't tell 'em.
Somewhere, deep underneath the surface of the ocean in the Pacific Basin...
*snip*
"Oops"
Hmm...Wonder what THAT fiber splicer would charge per hour?
-R
"They also assert that the U.S. government is bailing out Global Crossing to prevent its undersea routes falling into foreign hands."
Global Crossing is a Bermuda Based Corporation.
Unless the federal Government is buying Bermuda (Which, quite frankly, I'm OK with...) the undersea routes are already owned by "foreign hands".
According to Gennifer Flowers, it isn't long at all.