[021118.EN.BIZ] Marine Sector Unprepared For Cyber Hack, Big Firms Do Better Than Small

THIRTY-EIGHT per cent of all shipping companies polled have reported cyber attackers hit within the past year, according to a New Orleans law firm Jones Walker, which conducted the survey of industry leaders and experts.

Its Maritime Cybersecurity Survey polled 126 senior executives, chief information and technology officers, non-executive security and compliance leaders, and key managers from US maritime companies, reported the American Journal of Transportation.

Ten per cent of respondents reported that the data breaches were successful, while 28 per cent said they were thwarted.

Results, which were announced at the recent Marine Technology Society and IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society's OCEANS conference in Charleston, South Carolina, show that the maritime sector faces serious cyber threats from data-seeking hackers.

Said co-author Hansford Wogan, a maritime attorney: "There are enormous risks to the industry as a whole. Yet, the survey indicates that only the larger maritime companies seem to have this threat on their radar, while the smaller and mid-sized companies are mostly unprepared.

"An ounce of prevention in training is worth a pound of a cure in terms of cyber attack readiness, and if every company approached this cybersecurity issue with that mindset, the maritime industry as a whole would be far less at risk," he said.

Sixty-nine per cent of respondents expressed confidence in the maritime industry's overall cybersecurity readiness, yet 64 per cent indicated that their own companies are unprepared to handle the far-reaching business, financial, regulatory, and public relations consequences of a data breach.

Small and mid-size companies are far less prepared. All per cent of respondents from large organisations indicated they are prepared to prevent a data breach, while only six per cent of small company respondents and 19 per cent of mid-size company (50 to 400 employees) respondents indicated preparedness, said the survey.

Small and mid-size companies lack even the most fundamental protections, exposing them to huge potential losses. Ninety-two per cent of small company and 69 per cent of mid-size company respondents confirmed they have no cyber insurance. In contrast, 97 per cent of large company respondents have cyber insurance coverage.

Source : HKSG.