In California, vandals damaged Spectrum fiber optic cables in western Riverside County on January 3, briefly cutting TV, internet and phone service to thousands of customers in Eastvale, Riverside, Jurupa Valley and parts of Rancho Cucamonga. Service has since been restored, according to the Orange County Register.
Spectrum said it is offering up to $25,000 for information leading to arrests, following similar damage reported in Chino Hills in December. The company believes the vandalism may be linked to attempted copper theft, though its fiber cables do not contain copper.
A recent National Cable and Telecommunications Association report found more than 15,500 such incidents between June 2024 and June 2025, disrupting service for over 9.5 million customers and prompting calls for tougher laws, stricter scrap metal rules and increased security…