Growing use of satellite connections to run ships' onboard systems is making vessels vulnerable to hacking attacks, warns Cydome, following digital assaults on at least two tankers this week. Attacks infiltrating ships via "edge devices" connecting to outside satellites jumped from 3% of all attacks in 2024 to 22% in 2025, with absolute numbers in the hundreds. "Every mechanism on a ship — engine, navigation etc — is connected via satellite online to the shore, so everything is exposed. The whole thing is a floating attack surface," said Marc Oppenheim, regional business director at Cydome.

Hackers have generally tried to install ransomware, but shipping executives fear attackers could take control of critical automated operations. US officials are investigating potential Iranian cyber attacks on two tankers travelling to the US from the Middle East. One, the VL Prosperity, was hacked while transiting the Strait of Gibraltar in August.

Iran's Mehr News Agency claimed the vessel lost communications for about 30 hours. The US Coast Guard boarded the vessel on August 21 to ensure integrity of operational and information technology systems. Cydome said the attack on VL Prosperity, a South Korean-managed ship carrying 2mn barrels of Gulf crude, was stark evidence that regional tensions impact civil maritime transportation.

Cyber attacks were seen as the second-highest risk to maritime operations in the International Chamber of Shipping's 2026 survey, yet cyber security ranked only fifth in the industry's ability to deal with the risk.