Facebook cancels undersea cable from California to Hong Kong

Facebook’s plans for an undersea data cable connecting California and Hong Kong have been cancelled due to the US government’s fear that China could leverage it to steal data. Facebook is withdrawing its bid to install an 8,000-mile-long fiber-optic cable because of pressure from US national security representatives who were concerned that the cable 5officials.  who raised concerns that an undersea cable to Hong Kong would be vulnerable to Chinese espionage. Previously in September, developers canceled plans for another cable between Los Angeles and Hong Kong because of similar concerns. This project involving Google and Facebook had been announced in 2016. A third cable was cancelled last year when Facebook withdrew a plan for a cable between Hong Kong and San Francisco. In the Atlantic Ocean, Google is building an undersea cable, the “Grace Hopper”  linking the US, England, and Spain and will run from New York and split off to Bilbao in Spain and Cornwall in the UK.