Poor or unreliable broadband connections are often blamed on network providers and engineers, but a new potential cause has been identified - sharks.

At the Google Cloud Roadshow, product manager Dan Belcher discussed how Google was taking steps to reinforce undersea cables that deliver internet connections to homes and businesses throughout the world due to the threat of shark attacks.

The fish occasionally bite through the wires, causing people's broadband to cut off, so therefore the technology giant is coating the cables with a strong material similar to that used in the manufacturing of bullet-proof vests.

However, this is not a new problem, as in 1987, the New York Times published a story reporting that sharks were biting subsea fibre optic cables, which at the time were a new presence in the ocean.

Undersea cables are being used as part of the UK's widespread broadband rollout programmes, with fibre optic wires replacing old copper ones. The updated cables can transfer data significantly quicker than copper wires, with speeds up to 100 times faster.

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