Mobile phones as real-time enemy intelligence.
Author: Guido Baratta | Image: Humankind
When the Russian artillery fire fell on Mariupol, Ukraine's largest mobile operator said that repair crews were working to prevent the last functioning mobile tower in the city from going offline. Their teams started to operate on the ground immediately and continued working while a few explosions were still going off around the neighborhood. Keeping everyone connected and being able to communicate with friends and families elsewhere was, and still is, their biggest priority.
According to public data, directors of telecommunications companies, and industry analysts, the mobile telecommunications services of Ukraine, are still showing an unexpected strength even after a month of war and infostructure incursions. Broadband and wireless signals persisted despite attacks that failed, especially in areas confirmed by heavy bombing.
Telecommunications experts cite a combination of bold repairs, private-sector collaboration, and more reliable technologies that help keep the connection alive. Government officials said that frequent access to the Internet had helped Ukraine's war defenses unexpectedly. The wireless service provided military residents with information about the Russian units' attack positions and helped send pictures and videos of attacks to apartments, hospitals, and other civilian targets.
The amount of visible Internet data flowing from Ukraine has dropped by about 20% from pre-invasion levels, according to network monitoring service Kentik Inc. This number is relatively low in a country where frontline cities are exposed to heavy bombing, and entire neighborhoods are under constant attack.
Such a show of strength and reliability lies in the fact that the war years in the eastern part of Ukraine prepared the telecommunications sector for a complete invasion. One demonstrating factor was that all wireless operators began to allow their customers to roam their networks, making the service more reliable even in the more remote locations.
During that time, broadband companies expanded their coverage to reach users in other cities and brought Wi-Fi service to more than 200 anti-aircraft shelters. Their crew spent about two months before the recent attack relocating some facilities from the eastern areas to strengthen wireless coverage in the west, where millions have already been displaced.
Before the invasion began, ISPs added additional protections under government control. For example, one day after the February invasion, Ukrainian carriers stopped traffic on all registered telephone numbers in Belarus and Russia. The move made sending malicious network commands that disrupt such networks almost impossible. The three leading Ukrainian operators made the transition simultaneously, showing greater coordination and prompt implementation strategies.
Ukraine's civilian communications networks are shown to be invincible. Internet service in severely affected cities such as Kharkiv, Kherson, and Mariupol has been threatened or lost. But industry analysts say the telecommunications infrastructure could lag even further. Customs towers in recently conquered areas do not appear to have been conquered by Russian troops, unlike towers that were beaten years ago in regions that separate Russian allies in the east.
Other telecommunications executives say Russia's growing military presence has provided time to add backup optical lines and develop contingency plans over the years. During the winter, the internet providers moved some network equipment to the west onto safer grounds and are now using strict timetables designed to allow for better maintenance and lessen disruptions.
If there was any doubt that this would be a very different kind of war, the fact that wireless service providers did end up weaponizing the hands of the civilian populations with on-time intelligence clusters is a clear sign of our changing time, where technology and human rituals are going to help wins wars and ease sociopolitical battles.
