GCHQ(NSA) tap fibre-optic cables for secret access to world's communications

[snooper2]

17. Sure did, same thing back then, over-hyped by people that don't understand telecommunications

I don't think you really grasp the amount of fiber optic cable in the World, how traffic routes, technologies like DWDM or how carriers interconnect for Voice and/or Data traffic...

Have you ever even held a piece of fiber in your hand?

This picture mean anything to you?




This make sense?

The Zettabyte Era is upon us. Cisco research indicates that the total volume of worldwide IP traffic is doubling every two years. By 2012, the world's IP networks will transport 44 exabytes of traffic - equivalent to 522 exabytes per year, or a little over half a Zettabyte - each month. This growth will be driven not just by an expanding user base, but by the emergence of a new generation of complex, highly personalized, bandwidth-intensive media applications.
These trends are compelling service providers to rethink their approaches to core network architectures. How can network operators achieve the scalability to support the enormous bandwidth demands of the coming years? How can they extend intelligence throughout the network to deliver innovative services with superior quality? How can they move beyond the static optical networking model of the past to an environment that supports dynamic, end-to-end provisioning of any service, anywhere, any time? One architecture can make this vision a reality today: IP over dense wavelength-division multiplexing (IPoDWDM).
With the convergence of IP intelligence and DWDM transport technology in Cisco® IPoDWDM solutions, service providers around the globe are realizing:
• Significant capital savings by eliminating layers of transponders between IP and optical network layers

• Lower total cost of ownership through a simpler architecture with fewer network elements, remote manageability, and unprecedented wavelength flexibility

• Next-generation provisioning and protection capabilities through the integration of IP- and optical-layer intelligence

Now, Cisco is extending the value of its IPoDWDM portfolio even further with a suite of powerful new features that enhance scalability and efficiency, and fulfill the promise of infinitely flexible, end-to-end optical provisioning.