Google, Meta’s request to use the submarine data cable for Asia gets the support of the United States government

[ad_1]

The Biden administration on Friday recommended Meta, Alphabet’s Google and Facebook parent, get permission to use an undersea cable system to handle growing internet traffic to Asia. The administration has urged the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to grant licenses to companies to send and receive data on the existing 8,000-mile Pacific Light Cable network. The undersea fiber optic cable system connects the United States, Taiwan, the Philippines and Hong Kong.

Submarine cables carry nearly all of the world’s Internet data traffic. Meta asked for permission to use the portion from the Philippines to the US, while Google asked for permission to connect to Taiwan.

The companies have pledged to protect the privacy and data security of Americans, particularly against Chinese intelligence operations.

Google and Meta’s plan abandoned a previous proposal to use the network cable for Hong Kong, which is controlled by Beijing. Several U.S. government agencies have recommended blocking this plan in 2020.

The Justice Department said the national security agreements with Google and Meta were necessary given “China-backed efforts to acquire the sensitive personal data of millions of US people.”

The Chinese embassy in Washington and Google did not immediately comment.

Google said in 2020 that it needs data connections to handle the growing traffic between its data centers in Taiwan and the United States.

A Meta spokesperson said “the cable system increases the capacity of the Internet” between the United States and the Philippines “to help people stay connected and share content.” The cables are secure and the data is protected with strong encryption, he said.

Under the agreements, Google and Meta must conduct annual risk assessments for sensitive data and must be able to limit or stop data traffic on the cables within 24 hours.

About 300 submarine cables form the backbone of the Internet, carrying 99 percent of the world’s data traffic.

© Thomson Reuters 2021

[ad_2]