On Monday, Congressman Rudy Yakym (IN-02) introduced the Safeguarding Essential Cables through Undersea Risk Elimination (SECURE) American Telecommunications Act (H.R. 3479) to ensure that we are able to hold adversaries like China and Russia accountable for cutting telecommunications cables.
“Over the last four years, our adversaries grew bolder, economically and militarily, because they knew they’d face no real consequences,” Rep. Yakym said. “The SECURE American Telecommunications Act changes that. It enhances penalties for cutting undersea cables and creates a comprehensive new security framework to protect them. This is about partnering with President Trump’s efforts to reclaim America’s strength, secure our critical infrastructure, and ensure those who seek to harm us know they will pay the price.”
Read the full bill text here.
Read the one-pager here.
Read the section-by-section here.
Read The Daily Caller exclusive here.
Background:
Submarine cables are the backbone of global digital infrastructure, carrying more than 95% of transoceanic data and facilitating over $10 trillion in daily financial transactions. The SWIFT network alone handles 15 million international financial messages across 195 countries every day. Despite their critical importance, these cables remain vulnerable to both physical and cyber threats. Threats highlighted by recent suspicious incidents involving Russian and Chinese vessels near cable routes in the Baltic Sea and around Taiwan.
The laws governing these vital systems haven’t been updated in over a century. Current penalties for damaging submarine cables are outdated, just $500 for negligence and $5,000 for intentional acts and there are no mandated physical or cybersecurity standards in place.
The SECURE (Safeguarding Essential Cables through Undersea Risk Elimination) American Telecommunications Act aims to modernize this framework. It would strengthen penalties, mandate minimum security standards, improve interagency coordination, and prohibit cable connections that pose national security risks. The legislation reflects a comprehensive effort to protect America’s telecommunications infrastructure against modern threats from foreign adversaries and evolving grey-zone tactics.
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