In a bid to ensure continuous growth and safe shipping industry there is need to invest in new technology to tackle cyber attacks and security threat that could be posed at the ports and its environment.
Security at the ports is important to the development of a nation’s economy. The government must ensure that threats to shipping industry are reduced or totally eradicated.
According to reports in 2020 as seen, the International Maritime Organization (IMO), MSC and CMA CGM both attacked, and port infrastructure in the USA targeted by ransomware. Also, in Iran a cyber-attack on the Shahi Rajaee port, allegedly carried out by Israel, caused significant disruption to both land and sea traffic while systems were restored. The four biggest maritime shipping companies in the world have been hit by cyber-attacks in the past four years.
Similarly in Nigeria, barely two weeks after the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) commenced the implementation of the electronic call-up system, to ease traffic gridlock in Apapa, it was reported that the system was cloned and counterfeit call-up slips where printed for truck drivers.
Also, in 2020 the NPA headquarters in Marina, Lagos was set on fire by hoodlums involved in the #EndSARS protests.
One could question why the port is always a target when there is unrest or any security error, well it could be because of the critical nature of ports which makes it attractive to attackers.
And some of the easy ways ports could be attacked are not limited to the following; when attackers gain unauthorized access to a port facility, exposed services that allow organisations connect to the internet (whether it’s a website or email logins attackers are constantly scanning the internet for services that might give them access, and probing for weaknesses and vulnerabilities).
Also, the daily large interactions going on in ports, especially as it’s bare to interact with a large number users on a daily basis, this give attackers a wide range of opportunities to attempt to impersonate legitimate individuals working in the ports environment.
However, certain security precaution needs to be put in place to tackle insecurity in ports. With the reintroduced Cargo Tracking Notes (CTN) or the ECTN (Electronic Cargo Tracking Note), Nigeria ports could be said to be in the right direction.
Ports authority must leverage on technology and automation to help improve ports operations to be able to reduce human contacts to the minimum, it is the set time to setup scanners at ports. The use of standardized technology would improve efficiency greatly within the industry.
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