A comprehensive group of maritime players has released new cyber risk management guidelines. A special focus lies on so-called »operational technology«
As technology continues to develop, information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT) onboard ships are are getting interconnected – and increasingly[ds_preview] often connected to the internet. This brings the greater risk of unauthorised access or malicious attacks to ships’ systems and networks. Risks may also occur from personnel accessing systems on board, for example by introducing malware via portable media.
The third edition of the »Guidelines on Cyber Security Onboard Ships« addresses the requirement to incorporate cyber risks in the ship’s safety management system (SMS). It also reflects a deeper experience with risk assessments of operational technology – such as navigational systems and engine controls – and provides more guidance for dealing with the cyber risks arising from parties in the supply chain.
OT systems control the physical world and IT systems manage data. OT is hardware and software that directly monitors/controls physical devices and processes. IT covers the spectrum of technologies for information processing, including software, hardware and communication technologies. Traditionally OT and IT have been separated, but with the internet, OT and IT are coming closer as historically stand-alone systems are becoming integrated.
Disruption of the operation of OT systems may impose significant risk to the safety of onboard personnel, cargo, damage to the marine environment, and impede the ship’s operation, the partners think. Participants were BIMCO, InterManager, International Association of Dry Cargo Shipowners (INTERCARGO), International Association of Independent Tanker Owners (INTERTANKO), International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), International Union of Marine Insurance (IUMI), Oil Companies International Marine Forum (OCIMF) and World Shipping Council (WSC). The work was supported by Anglo Eastern, Columbia Ship Management, Maersk Line, Moran Shipping Agencies as well as the cyber security experts NCC, SOFTimpact, Templar Executives and Cyber Keel.
»The industry will soon be under the obligation to incorporate measures to deal with cyber risks in the ship’s safety management system. This had not been tackled in the previous versions,« said Dirk Fry, chair of BIMCO’s cyber security working group and Director of Columbia Ship Management. »The third edition provides additional information which should help shipping companies carry out proper risk assessments and include measures in their safety management systems to protect ships from cyber-incidents. A new dedicated annex provides measures that all companies should consider implementing to address cyber risk management in an approved SMS,« he added. In his opinion, this is much easier said than done, noting that the criminals trying to exploit companies or breach their security are getting more inventive by the minute.
A second key expansion in the guidelines is around operational technology. Ships have more and more operational technology which is integrated with information technology and which can be connected to the internet, but the risks associated with OT are different from IT systems.
For example, malfunctioning IT may cause significant delay of a ship’s unloading or clearance, but with malfunctioning or inoperative OT there can be a real risk of harm to people, the ship or the marine environment.
»On a ship, the job may be less focused on protecting data while protecting operational systems working in the real world has direct safety implications. If the ECDIS system or software controlling an engine are hit with malware, or if it breaks down due to lack of compatibility after an update of software, it can lead to dangerous situations,« Fry said.
According to the Cyber Security Survey by BIMCO and ABS Advanced Solutions, the industry is more aware of the issue and has increased cyber risk management training, but there remains room for improvement.
A third new focus area is the risk of malware infecting the ship’s systems via the many parties associated with the operation of a ship and its systems. »The ships are not just sitting there in the middle of the ocean. More and more ships are also closely connected to security systems in the companies’ offices and shippers’ offices and agents’ offices,« says Fry.
