The maritime industry is experiencing a significant increase in cyber attacks, fueled by geopolitical tensions and state-linked hackers targeting crucial trade flows. A comprehensive review by researchers at the Netherlands’ NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences has revealed that at least 64 cyber incidents affected shipowners, ports, and maritime groups in 2023 alone. This marks a stark rise from just three incidents a decade earlier and none in 2003.
According to the study, over 80 percent of identified attacks since 2001 originated from state actors in Russia, China, North Korea, or Iran. This surge in cyber threats underscores the vulnerability of the international shipping industry, which facilitates over 80 percent of global trade.
Guy Platten, secretary-general of the International Chamber of Shipping, highlighted the unprecedented threats facing the industry.
“The international rules-based order… the great system [that benefited shipping] since the second world war is under threat like never before,” he said, reflecting the concerns of shipowners who control about 80 percent of the world’s commercial fleet.
State-Linked Hackers Exploit Trade Routes to Disrupt Global Shipping
Recent state-linked cyber attacks have demonstrated how conflicts from Ukraine to the Middle East can destabilize global trade by disrupting shipping operations. For an industry historically focused on physical security threats, the rise of online piracy poses a new and formidable challenge.
Stephen McCombie, a maritime IT security professor at NHL Stenden, noted the sector’s low investment in IT security. “IT spend in the maritime sector is pretty low,” he said, pointing out the difficulty in finding professionals with both maritime and cybersecurity expertise. This shortage leaves the industry particularly vulnerable at a time when global conflicts are already impacting trade routes.
The increasing digitization of ships, coupled with the adoption of internet-enabled devices facilitated by low Earth orbit satellites, is creating new opportunities for cyber attacks. Tom Walters, a shipping lawyer at HFW, warned that a cyber attack on a ship’s systems could lead to disruptions comparable to the Baltimore bridge crash earlier this year, which closed one of the US’s busiest ports and forced carmakers to reroute shipments.
Significant cyber incidents have underscored the potential impact of these attacks. In 2020, Iran’s Rajaee Port, handling nearly half of the country’s foreign trade, was targeted. Last year, an attack took down the website of the port of Rotterdam, Europe’s largest. In 2017, Danish shipping giant AP Møller-Maersk, which controls about 15 percent of the world’s container shipping capacity, suffered a major breach from the NotPetya malware attack attributed to Russian agents. This attack rendered the company unable to process customer orders and forced the rerouting of ships.
McCombie also pointed out that cyber criminals are increasingly seeing opportunities to extort money from shipowners, who may be more likely to pay ransoms to restore their systems quickly due to the critical nature of their operations.
As the shipping industry grapples with these rising cyber threats, it is clear that a more robust approach to cybersecurity is essential. The industry’s reliance on digital technologies, while providing significant operational efficiencies, also necessitates heightened vigilance and investment in cybersecurity measures to safeguard global trade routes from disruption.
