Threat looms of Russian attack on undersea cables to shut down West’s internet

One of the fears in the West is that Russia will use its submarines to damage the undersea cables that keep the Internet running. © Alexander Zemlianichenko, AP

US President Joe Biden warned this week that Russia is considering attacks on critical infrastructure. One of the scenarios that has been mooted since the start of the war in Ukraine is that Moscow will attack undersea cables in order to cut off the world's internet. But this worst-case scenario is more difficult to implement than it sounds.

"Based on evolving intelligence, Russia might be planning a cyber attack against us,” Biden said at a press conference on March 21. "The magnitude of Russia's cyber capacity is fairly consequential and it's coming."