US Coast Guard and FBI personnel boarded two commercial vessels bound for the United States in the Gulf of Mexico last month after indications that hackers had broken into their computer networks. The incidents occurred on August 21 and August 24.
The incidents highlight the growing threat of cyberattacks on maritime infrastructure, potentially disrupting global trade routes and impacting the security of vessels and their cargo destined for the United States.
US Coast Guard and FBI personnel boarded two commercial vessels bound for the United States in the Gulf of Mexico last month after indications that hackers had broken into their computer networks, the agencies said on Thursday. The operations were carried out on August 21 and August 24 aboard two foreign-flagged ships. The FBI stated that a joint Coast Guard-FBI team boarded the vessels after receiving "indications that the networks of both vessels were compromised." The Coast Guard confirmed the August 21 boarding, attributing it to "foreign cyber actors" without identifying them. Maritime security group Dryad Global confirmed that one of the ships was the Liberian-flagged VL Prosperity, which is currently anchored near Galveston, Texas. Iran's Mehr news agency reported on August 20 that VL Prosperity had experienced "a major cyberattack" while transiting the Strait of Gibraltar, resulting in a 30-hour communication outage. The Iranian report also cited a crew member claiming hackers infiltrated engine-room systems, reduced cooling flow, increased engine speed, and disabled fuel and engine-oil tanks, though it did not name the perpetrators. Corey Ranslem, CEO of Dryad Global, noted that such ship-centered cyberattacks are not difficult to execute and predicted their continuation and expansion.