With the super-yacht industry booming over recent years, it is perhaps inevitable that this market catering exclusively for the global elite has presented new and challenging security issues, writes Rob Bates, pictured, Senior Operations Manager at Blackstone Consultancy. Pirates, hackers and other opportunistic criminals are all seeing the value that comes from targeting super-yachts and mitigating these risks is something every yacht owner should consider.
We have extensive experience in protecting influential individuals, their families and their assets when aboard their yachts. Consequently, listed below are what we deem to be prevalent threats surrounding superyacht owners.
Piracy and ports
To many, the term ‘pirates’ may evoke images of galleons and treasure, but for both commercial sailors and superyacht owner’s piracy can pose a serious threat. As matters stand parts of the Philippines, the Gulf of Aden and the coast of west Africa are classified as ‘red-alert’ areas for pirate activity whilst some parts of the Caribbean are categorised ‘Amber’, (ie. requiring caution). Although some areas of the Caribbean are safe, others have become hot-spots for pirates who prey upon passing vessels. Even the southern and eastern regions of the Mediterranean have become increasingly dangerous due to conflicts in both Libya and Syria and the increasing usage of waters around Sicily and Gibraltar by people traffickers. An incident in 2016 off of the coast of Turkey highlighted the dangers to sailors in waters near to conflict zones. A Turkish coast guard vessel spotted a raft that appeared to contain dead bodies drifting off of their coast. However, when the coast guard approached and boarded the raft exploded, killing a Turkish sailor, a victim of an IED.
When sailing in dangerous waters, superyacht owners are advised to invest in additional security personnel and surveillance equipment. Superyachts can also be supplied with safe rooms and tracking devices for further protection in the event of an attack. Comprehensive crew training protocols are also essential. Crew should be instructed on how to act in a crisis and not to discuss departure plans or yacht details with any third parties whilst on shore. We have also helped supply clients with risk assessments for the entirety of their voyage or for a particular destination or area. Recently we conducted several risk assessments of ports in the Aegean identifying risks to the vessel by using crime pattern analysis. This allowed the client to sail from port to port aware of the risks and the methods needed to mitigate them.
Our Protection teams are experienced, professional, discreet and ready to address the growing threats in port and at sea. Their speciality is Counter-Piracy Crisis Management delivered to privately owned yachts, mitigating threats and protecting crew, owners and their reputations.
Hackers
In addition to physical threats from pirates, today we have also seen superyachts come under cyber-attack. A skilled hacker can often infiltrate superyacht networks which are often not regarded as serious security issues by many owners. At a recent superyacht conferences, one cyber security expert showed how a hacker took complete control of a multi-million-dollar superyacht’s Wi-Fi within a few hours using only a laptop. Via the ships Wi-Fi the hacker had control of the satellite communications, the telephone system, the Wi-Fi, and the navigation controls. Once they had access to the inside of the network, the hackers also had the option of wiping the data to erase their footprints behind them.
Though owners like to have strong Wi-Fi so they can operate their businesses from the vessel it means that the network extends far from the actual ship, creating openings for hackers. Yacht owners should therefore ask themselves who are they moored next to? Evidence of cyber-attacks on yachts include a billionaire who had more than £100,000 stolen when criminals hacked his bank account. Other high net individuals have been blackmailed with compromising photos and some superyacht owners have even been forced to pay a ransom to unlock their vessel’s navigation systems. Infiltrating a ship’s Wi-Fi can also enable assailants to manipulate the craft’s CCTV equipment and assist the execution of a physical attack or kidnap.
Superyachts are an obvious sign of great wealth which marks their owners (and anyone aboard) as high value targets to criminals. Despite this, and the fact that the ships themselves are filled with technology that can be tampered with, digital security on-board yachts is often overlooked and vulnerable to attack.
It is strongly advised that superyacht owners invest in proven security software with end-to-end encryption and two-factor authentication in order to prevent hackers from accessing the ship’s data systems.
Bolstering the cyber security of the devices on-board your yacht is also crucial. Cyber security experts were also recently able to hack into a superyacht and alter the draft/water depth details of the craft simply by infiltrating the Captain’s email. Though this may seem like a minor change, this attack could tamper with systems at a critical point during an intended voyage (for example during night-time passage through a narrow canal or strait). During the attack, the ship’s instruments looked normal, but it was deceiving the Officer of the Watch. The actual situation had become completely different to the one on screen and if the vessel had been operational, it would have almost certainly run aground. During the night, when navigation by instrument is critical, altering parameters such as position, heading, depth and speed can have a dramatic effect. More disturbing is that even when under this type of attack the navigation picture made sense and did not arouse suspicion.
Drones
The commercial drone industry is expected to surpass $1 billion in annual sales in 2018. Although these gadgets have a wide range of beneficial applications, they also pose a growing threat for superyacht owners and the privacy of their guests. This was demonstrated by the case of seven guests aboard a superyacht moored in Portocolom, Mallorca, in June 2017 who were filmed by a drone as they sunbathed naked on the deck of their yacht.
The laws on drones fluctuate from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Though many anti drone systems do exist, they are often bulky man-portable pieces of equipment that are seldom effective. Blackstone Consultancy would advise capturing data on the drone and locating its source, rather than trying to bring one down.
Crew vulnerabilities
Another security measure that superyacht owners can take is to prevent any vulnerabilities within the crew. The maritime industry is transitory and crew members (especially junior ones) seldom stay with one ship for long. This constant staff turnover can result in due diligence becoming neglected, which can prove a serious risk for the yacht owner and even the rest of the crew. We have been able to carry out a variety of due diligence checks ranging from simple red flag reports to highlight any legal or debt issues to in-depth data scrapes that completely examine a subject’s lifestyle and social media footprint.
A crew should also be trained accordingly with regards to digital security protocols and safe Internet practices. Posting photos of the ship on social media, opening emails from suspicious parties and the introduction of unknown USB or disk drives are all ways in which crew members can inadvertently cause harm to the vessel and their client. For these reasons, many superyachts have confidentiality clauses which require them to use client provided phones and computers rather than their own.
And insurance
Superyacht owners can suffer significant financial losses and reputational damage due to the poor management, monitoring and handling of finances and sensitive information. Fortunately, we are able to provide clients with a complete risk assessment of their superyacht; from conducting risk assessments of proposed destinations to checking your cargo and data entry systems and crew. Blackstone Consultancy specialists can supply Maritime Security Teams (where required) to install security architecture, encryption communications software and even anti-piracy measures.
We remain dedicated to providing our clients with exceptional security standards with the utmost discretion. Our close protection teams and digital security specialists can safeguard your superyacht against all manner of physical, remote and digital threats; thus leaving you and your guests free to sail safely and securely. The multifaceted nature of the risk to superyacht owners should also encourage them investigate comprehensive insurance policies for their vessels
