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What’s New: Recognition of PNT as a cyber issue in maritime cargo.
Why It’s Important:
- PNT is essential to maritime. And it is a cyber issue. Neither of these are well appreciated across the community.
- Maritime is involved in 95% of international trade. PNT is essential to the smooth functioning of modern ports (see article).
What Else To Know:
- The US Coast Guard recently identified Chinese-made cargo cranes as a cyber and infrastructure threat.
- We need to recognize PNT as a cyber issue in EVERY domain.
- Full disclosure, Locata mentioned repeatedly in the article, is an RNTF supporter.
Time to rethink positioning technology as a strategic asset and a cybersecurity risk
Container terminals need to be aware of a global trend to recognize a secure PNT system as a critical asset to support a wide range of automation systems.
There are, however, growing cybersecurity concerns over the use of an open access positioning system initially designed and deployed for military applications in civilian systems like equipment automation, autonomous cars, mining, and critical infrastructure support. Specifically, with regard to shipping applications, in 2018 the US Maritime Administration issued advisories warning of GPS disruptions in the eastern Mediterranean and around Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.
More recently, GPS jamming has been prevalent in the war between Ukraine and Russia, with Russia disrupting signals to thwart Ukrainian drone attacks. These issues are ongoing. Meanwhile, in January, there were reports of “significant GPS signal disruptions” in Finland and Estonia, then northern Poland and the southern Baltic Sea region.
Critical concerns
