The global network of underwater cables forms a large part of the Internet’s backbone, carrying the majority of data around the world and eventually linking up to the networks that power cell towers and Wi-Fi connections.Sixteen of these submarine cables—which are often no thicker than a hosepipe and are vulnerable to damage from ships’ anchors and earthquakes—pass 1,200 miles through the Red Sea before they hop over land in Egypt and get to the Mediterranean Sea, connecting Europe to Asia.“Because it's a site of intense concentration of global movement, that does make it more vulnerable than many places around the world.”The area has also recently gained attention from the European Parliament, which in a June report highlighted it as a risk for widespread Internet disruption.“The most vital bottleneck for the EU concerns the passage between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean via the Red Sea because the core connectivity to Asia runs via this route,” the report says, flagging extremism and maritime terrorism as risks in the area.Pyramid schemeLook at Egypt on a map of the world’s subsea Internet cables and it immediately becomes clear why Internet experts have been concerned about the area for years."