It is engineers, not sharks, who are literally ripping the internet out of the ocean
Published on Feb 23, 2026 at 8:26 PM (UTC+4)
by Henry Kelsall
Last updated on Feb 23, 2026 at 10:25 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Emma Matthews
If you thought it was sharks ripping the internet out of the ocean, well, it turns out it is, in actual fact, engineers who are doing the damage to fiber-optic cables.
A myth has been perpetuated for decades that sharks are doing damage to transoceanic fiber-optic cables and ripping them from the ocean floor.
It transpires this couldn’t be further from the truth, as sharks would never simply go and bite a cable unless, for some reason, it had been covered in fish.
As it transpires, engineers are the ones who are ripping out some of these deep-ocean cables.
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The sharks are innocent
This myth began with the installation of a subsea fiber-optic cable known as TAT-8.
TAT-8 was the eighth transatlantic communications cable installed, and the first transatlantic fiber-optic cable.
The cable was constructed in 1988 by a consortium of companies.
This was led by AT&T, France Telecom, and British Telecom.
Some evidence of sharks eating fiber optic cables was discovered.
This, however, was with a trial cable laid in the Canary Islands in 1985.
As there were no electrical screens, feeding frenzies were caused in any sharks that swam nearby.
Some did attack the cable, and the voltage lines killed some.
But having learned an important lesson, when it came to laying the TAT-8 cable, a shark shield was installed.
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TAT-8 was not eaten by Great Whites
As such, even if some did bite on TAT-8, they certainly didn’t rip out the cables and eat them.
Tests were even conducted to attempt to force-feed sharks bunches of cables, but very few even bit on the cable.
Years later, the fiber-optic line is being retired and slowly replaced.
So it’s actually engineers conducting essential work who are ripping out chunks of this cable.
Sharks are completely innocent, save for a few teeth marks in some small sections.
Yet this myth that sharks eat internet cables has been floating around since the mid-1980s.
But there is little to no record of a shark actually eating sections of the internet since the shark shield was installed.
So if anyone does suffer disruption for a period, it’s highly likely to be because of an engineer, and not a shark.
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Henry joined the Supercar Blondie team in February 2025, and since then has covered a wide array of topics ranging from EVs, American barn finds, and the odd Cold War jet. He’s combined his passion for cars with his keen interest in motorsport and his side hustle as a volunteer steam locomotive fireman at a leading heritage steam railway in England.
