NATO is the North Atlantic Treaties Organization. Consisting of 32 member countries, a major media outlet has reported that it plans to develop facilities for the use of emergency satellite internet. In the article below, we discuss the plans and what this type of internet is. 

In a recent report by Bloomberg, NATO has discussed and begun to research a plan to use satellite internet, also known as space internet, should underwater communication cables be severed. This could occur through a natural disaster or a man-made intervention. Researchers from the US, Switzerland, Sweden, and Iceland plan to reroute internet from cables to satellites when these incidents occur to prevent outages.

What Is Satellite Internet Traffic?

So far, €400,000 has been given to the fund by NATO, and the rest of the project costs will come from research institutions. It is estimated that these cables handle $10 trillion in daily financial transactions, along with numerous other communications that keep the world moving. They must be kept open at all costs, and this is one way to safeguard their operations.

Satellite internet technology involves the transmission and reception of the Internet using a small dish on Earth and a satellite positioned in orbit. These satellites hang 22,300 miles above the Earth. The dish acts as a middleman between a network operation centre on Earth. Data goes from the dish to the satellite, to the NOC, and back again.

For the user, this does not make much difference from a normal internet connection. However, it allows people and places to connect to the Internet that do not have the traditional infrastructure available in developed areas. People in areas where cables don’t reach and cell towers exist can enjoy the internet using this system.

The Real Battle for Internet Traffic

Despite forward-thinking approaches to keeping the internet going, NATO may have to deal with battles within the web itself. Recent studies have found that global internet traffic is being flooded by an invasion of bots. These figures ranged from 36% in some studies to almost 50% in others. The latter also stated that around 32% of these are malicious bots, meaning ones that are designed to disrupt, cause harm, and partake in criminal activity.

Therefore, the internet must begin to clean up its act. For business owners, securing their networks using land or satellite-based internet is imperitive. There are plenty of tools to help with this, from firewalls to intrusion protection and detection systems. While developing a strategy for network security takes time, it is important due to constantly emerging threats and technologies such as those aforementioned.

Malicious bots are generally designed for cyber-attacks, either through malware, phishing scams, denial of service attacks, or any other nefarious schemes. As these increase, they not only make the internet more unsafe, they also make it less appealing a place for consumers. These malicious bots are becoming more sophisticated, allowing them to fake videos and replicate voice patterns. This is one field NATO should turn its gaze to if it wants to safeguard global financial transactions performed over the web.

Current Providers of Space Internet

Internet traffic is more than just sending emails, loading webpages, and the data required for checking social media. It has now become a part of the fabric of our personal and business lives, transferring information on taxes, finances and storing personal data. The biggest provider of space internet is Space X with their Starlink project. However, there are a host of companies, including ViaSat, EchoStar, Amazon-owned Project Kuiper, and Chinasat, along with others, who are developing facilities for this. It is unknown if any of them will be involved in the NATO project and its research as of yet.

In terms of satellites above the earth, Starlink does have the most with 6290. The closest competitor is ViaSat, which has four satellites in orbit. However, there is one fatal flaw with space internet that few of these companies mention. To get reception, the user must have a clear view of the sky. If you have a cloudy day, your link is not working. To be a truly successful project, this is something NATO must be working towards fixing.

Space-based internet traffic provides a viable alternative to cable-based communications. It also allows a way in which people who may have had previous problems connecting can do so, increasing internet usage rates. However, if traffic on earth cannot be improved and the removal of malicious bots is a priority, that traffic may not be worth anything at all.

As a user, all you can do is safeguard your own networks. Put up robust defences, back up your systems and protect yourself against harmful bots and cyber attacks. This should be done on a personal and business level. By increasing your own defences, you are protecting the information of yourself and your customers until the increasing threat of cybercrime has a unified response.

No related posts.

This Post was Last Updated On: November 8, 2024