Internet traffic hijack disrupts Google services

An internet diversion that rerouted data traffic through Russia and China disrupted several Google services on Monday, including search and cloud-hosting services.

Service interruptions lasted for nearly two hours and ended about 4:30 p.m. CST, network service companies said. In addition to Russian and Chinese telecommunications companies, a Nigerian internet provider also was involved.

Google confirmed Monday's disruption on a network status page but said only that it believed the cause was "external to Google." The company had little additional comment.

The specific method employed, formally known as border gateway protocol hijacking, can knock essential services offline and facilitate espionage and financial theft. Most network traffic to Google services — 94 percent as of Oct. 27 — is encrypted, which shields it from prying eyes even if diverted.

Alex Henthorn-Iwane, an executive at the network-intelligence company ThousandEyes, called Monday's incident the worst affecting Google that his company has seen.

He said he suspected nation-state involvement because the traffic was effectively landing at state-run China Telecom. A recent study by U.S. Naval War College and Tel Aviv University scholars says China systematically hijacks and diverts U.S. internet traffic.