Once considered a secure alternative to traditional cupper lines the use of fiber has not stopped the GCHQ (the U.K. version of the NSA in the U.S.) to eavesdrop on communications that traveled across these major data pipelines. This is just another uncovering of a major privacy violation in the "free world" which has been pointing to other countries for their rather open practice of eavesdropping on Internet communication.
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Washington Post about Guardian article
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