The two projects will examine the security and economic dimensions of undersea cable infrastructure.
Two researchers from the La Trobe Centre for Global Security (LCGS) have been awarded grants from the Cable Connectivity and Resilience Centre (CCRC) to examine the security and economic dimensions of undersea cable infrastructure. 99% of the world’s international internet use these cables, making them crucial to information security, and vulnerable to damage, both natural and malicious.
The successful researchers, Dr Samuel Bashfield and Dr Mark Manantan, are both based at the La Trobe Centre for Global Security.
Dr Bashfield’s project, Wires that Sense: Indo-Pacific Cable Governance in the Age of Fibre Sensing, will examine the policy implications of emerging fibre optic sensing technologies, which can transform submarine cables into monitoring tools capable of detecting vessel movements, tracking seabed conditions, and providing early warning of natural hazards.
“Fibre sensing is changing what submarine cables can do, and governments in the region are only beginning to work through the governance questions that raises,” says Dr Bashfield. “This project will give policymakers a clearer picture of the legal and regulatory choices ahead.”
Dr Bashfield recently co-authored Connected & Protected: Building Australia’s Submarine Cable Resilience with Dr David Brewster, published by the National Security College at the Australian National University, which is the most comprehensive assessment of Australia’s submarine cable network to date. He has also authored a short book, Submarine Cables, published by Cambridge University Press.
Dr Manantan’s grant will launch the Southeast Asia-Australia Resilient Cable Connectivity Initiative (SEA-ARC), a new initiative on the political economy of subsea cable resilience in Southeast Asia. It builds on the DFAT-funded Cyber ASEAN capacity-building project, and the key findings will support the ASEAN Guidelines for Strengthening Resilience and Repair of Submarine Cables.
“SEA-ARC examines the political economy of subsea cable resilience across quality of service, route diversity, bandwidth, and vendor supply-chain integrity,” says Dr Manantan. “Its findings will help shape economic, political, and social outcomes in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines.”
“Submarine cables are among the most critical pieces of infrastructure in the region, and Sam and Mark’s projects will help policymakers and industry better understand the risks and opportunities involved,” says Assoc. Professor Brooke Wilmsen, Deputy Director of the La Trobe Centre for Global Security. “The Centre aims to produce grounded, policy-relevant work that informs the decisions shaping the region’s security and future. Sam and Mark’s research is an excellent example of this.”
