Could Ukraine be left without the Internet?

Following recent massive attacks by Russian troops on our critical infrastructure, some regions of Ukraine were left without electricity, internet, and communications.

In the shortest possible time, thanks to the efforts of power engineers, telecom operators, and utility workers, both electricity and communications were restored almost everywhere.

We are, of course, grateful to all the specialists who ensure that ordinary users can receive a stable internet signal even during wartime.

Could Ukraine be left without internet altogether? Let's try to figure it out.

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During the war, Ukrainian internet providers may face various critical problems caused by external factors.

Providing an internet signal depends on:

• stable supply of electricity;
• integrity of cable infrastructure and ground structures;
• the possibility of physical access of repair teams to network facilities, etc.

Meanwhile, in regions where Russian aggressors physically blew up communications hubs, cut cables, or caused serious damage to network infrastructure, the internet was often unstable. But it was still there.

Ukrainian telecommunications and cybersecurity experts believe that a global outage of internet and mobile communications is unlikely, even during a war.

Ukraine is not facing an internet shutdown.

Moreover, Ukrainians are not at risk of an internet shutdown, nor are they facing the same fate as residents of Kazakhstan. According to Global Check, on January 5, 2022, the country experienced a near-total internet shutdown (Internet Government Shutdown). It lasted more than five hours—from 11:15 AM to 4:45 PM UTC.

And our experts' confidence is well-founded. The fact is that in Ukraine(unlike Kazakhstan, where the Internet enters and exits through one controlled point)There are many such international traffic exchange points. And they are diversified.

Ukrainian internet service providers have a "horizontal" structure. There are no "key points" whose damage (or complete failure) could bring down the entire system.

To illustrate, experts compare this structure to a bee swarm: even if you shoot at individual bees, the swarm will still remain unharmed and will maneuver flexibly, escaping danger.

Moreover, during the 7.5 months of full-scale war, Ukrainian communications specialists have acquired unique experience unmatched anywhere in the world. And this experience is put into practice almost daily, without holidays or weekends.

Providers and telecom operators are working around the clock: repairing, replacing, rerouting through backup channels, and actively collaborating with their colleagues. Even if the internet is down or intermittent in some areas, it's temporary.

Is it possible to jam the Internet?

Only a local network can be completely jammed. And even then, only the one used to transmit signals over the air. This includes Wi-Fi, GSM, Bluetooth, radio signals on certain frequencies, and satellite signals.

It is technically impossible to destroy the signal that Internet providers supply to users in their homes, apartments and offices in a stationary manner (i.e. via cable and wires).

The only possible cause for a complete shutdown of the internet signal is the physical destruction of servers and data centers, or the destruction of channels, wells, and other specialized infrastructure.

If there is electricity, there will be communication 

Ukraine's internet infrastructure is an artificial structure, based on routers, a transport medium (mostly fiber optics), and electricity to power it all.

Loss of power or serious damage to the main fibers means there is no physical connection—meaning the Internet stops working.

If the power supply works, there will be communication. After a power outage, telecom equipment needs some time to reboot and adjust network settings. And our power engineers—honor and praise to them—are working tirelessly.

How scary are jammers?

An automated jamming station can jam any type of radio signal within a 10-20 meter radius. The range depends on the size and power of the device: a small one suppresses signals within a 10-20 meter radius, while a more powerful electronic warfare system can jam signals up to 25 km away.

Yes, a powerful jamming system can temporarily hinder signal transmission in a specific sector. But—and this is important to understand!—not across the entire range, but only in the sector targeted by the jamming. And even then, this only applies if the jamming station is located 5-10 km from the target.

This means that completely jamming all radio signals over a large area (like a major city like Kharkiv) is practically impossible. To do so requires a multitude of conditions.

This wheeled "jammer" also requires a large supply of fuel for its diesel generator. After all, many powerful stationary systems are physically as large as trucks. They can easily be detected and destroyed by artillery, aircraft, or drones. Or even by a common grenade.

According to those directly involved in the events, Ukrainian soldiers have accomplished this task on the battlefield many times. The Ukrainian Armed Forces have extensive experience in countering electronic warfare systems and, most importantly, successful ones.

Why is it difficult to leave Ukraine without the Internet?

It is difficult to disrupt communications or the Internet over a large area because mobile operators and Internet infrastructure are designed to withstand excessive loads and cyberattacks.

Mobile operators can balance traffic to ensure stable coverage. They might only cause minor disruptions, and even then, only temporary.

The renowned international company RIPE NCC conducted a study examining factors affecting Internet resilience in Ukraine. 

Key points:

• absence of critical points of failure and dominant players in the market (the failure of an individual network has a relatively small impact on the entire network);
• a large number (19) of internal traffic exchange points, their high fault tolerance,
• lack of first-level transit networks.

All this makes the Ukrainian Internet almost invulnerable to external influence (read -consequences of military actions).

In some Ukrainian cities, invaders are physically destroying (or seizing) internet access infrastructure. They are destroying fiber optic lines, cables, electrical substations, and damaging wells.

The daily routine for repair crews in our country's hot spots is foreignresilienceIn this case, this term, which is translated asstability, correctly interpreted as"restorative capacity".

Diversified international traffic exchange points

Ukraine truly has a very strong and resilient internet access industry. It has strengthened and improved over the past quarter century, largely due to its independence.

For years, officials and corrupt officials of all stripes have tried to "tame" and "domesticate" this industry. However, it has defended its right to be self-sufficient and to evolve in line with technological advances.

And all this is thanks to good self-organization within the industry.Even during a full-scale war, the Ukrainian Internet remains one of the best in the world in terms of price-quality ratio.

Moreover, in Ukraine, it is possible to connect to the Starlink satellite Internet (this is available not only to the military).

Incidentally, Japan recently became the first country in Asia to deploy this SpaceX product. This internet provider is known to have even reached Antarctica. China, however, is opposed.

China wants to destroy Starlink and proposes shooting down satellites with special weapons. The Chinese government is demanding assurances from Musk that the head of Tesla and SpaceX will not launch the Starlink internet service in their country.

The whole point is probably that China has developed a "laser" Internet with a transmission speed of up to 10 Gbit/s, and this is a potential competitor to Starlink.

According to the developers, the inter-satellite laser communication terminal has many advantages: compactness (it is the size of a suitcase), high communication speed, confidentiality of transmitted data, and protection from electromagnetic interference.

In addition, Beijing does not approve of the deployment in Ukraine of the SpaceX satellite communications system, which helps the Ukrainian Armed Forces bypass the internet shutdown.

Can the state block access to the Internet?

According to cybersecurity experts, a global internet shutdown is possible in the following cases:

• monopolization of opportunities for international traffic exchange;
• exaggerated role of the state (as is the case in Russia and Belarus);
• total state control over the Internet industry (in the Republic of Kazakhstan, for example, such monopolists are JSC Kazakhtelecom and JSC Transtelecom).

Monopolistic companies can restrict internet access using Deep Packet Inspection technology (a system for in-depth traffic monitoring and analysis), as well as specialized equipment costing millions of dollars. But totalitarian regimes are not stingy and actively purchase it.

The collapse of communications in Kazakhstan was made possible by the hyper-centralized internet. The country has only 160 autonomous systems (AS) (an AS is a group of networks under a single control; this could be a large bank, for example, or a local ISP).

Estonia, whose territory is many times smaller than Kazakhstan, has a similar number of autonomous systems. By comparison, Ukraine has several thousand such systems, meaning it has many more communication channels.

It's also worth noting that in our country, most networks with large user bases are Ukrainian companies. For an aggressor country to shut down Ukrainian networks, it would have to force these companies to do so, which is, of course, impossible.

This is the difference from situations where the government simply shuts down the Internet in a country by force of will. This happened, for example, in Egypt during the "Arab Spring" of 2010-11.

Incidentally, on May 16, 2011, the UN recognized internet access as a fundamental human right. Therefore, shutting down the internet can be considered a serious violation.

Fighters of the invisible front

The valiant Ukrainian Armed Forces are fighting for Ukraine's independence on the battlefield, while employees of telecom operators, internet providers, data centers, traffic exchange points, and communications workers are working around the clock, performing work that may not always be visible, but is crucial. This is a true labor and civic feat, worthy of respect, high praise from the state, and deep human gratitude.

Thus, according to information from the head of the Ministry of Digital Development, Mykhailo Fedorov, on October 11, 2022, more than 3,000 base stations across Ukraine, which were de-energized on October 10 as a result of the shelling of thermal power plants, were restored within 24 hours.

This means that hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians have been able to connect with their loved ones again, and those who work remotely have been able to complete planned work tasks and ensure the possibility of earning money.

The restoration of communications and internet service is the result of the effective work of energy suppliers and telecommunications companies. The former quickly restored power, while the latter restored communications as quickly as possible. Satellite operator Starlink also helped bridge the communication gap.

Thanks to the coordinated work of these services, we, ordinary users, have access to online news on Telegram channels, the ability to post and read posts and stories on Instagram, and instantly respond to requests from volunteers and our defenders—the Ukrainian military.

And also, literally in a matter of hours, close the millions in collections to help those affected by the war, donate to help the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

A current example is the drone fundraising campaign organized by Serhiy Prytula and Serhiy Sternenko.

After the massive shelling of Ukraine on October 10In just one day, Ukrainians raised more than 350 million hryvnias for the "pomsta" (this is three times more than the initiators of the collection planned).

And of course, watch informative streams on YouTube, instantly exchange messages in messengers, discuss important issues on Facebook, and find the information you need on website pages in seconds.

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