14 DAY TRIAL // A few weeks ago, Trend Micro researchers demonstrated how easy it was to hack a ship’s Automatic Identification System (AIS), a system that’s used all over the world to track vessels. It appears such hacking techniques are already put to good use.
According to gCaptain, an Iranian tanker has hacked into its own AIS to disguise itself.
The crude oil tanker called Ramtin has been used to transport oil from Iran to Singapore. However, the company that operates the vessel, Tabuk Maritime, has been blacklisted by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
To make sure the tanker’s activities go undetected, its AIS systems have been “hacked” to make it look like it’s Homoda K., a much smaller vessel owned by a company that hasn’t been sanctioned by OFAC.
The predictive maritime analytics system known as MarInt was tracking Ramtin as it was passing through the Gulf of Oman on its way to Singapore. However, at one point, the ship’s Maritime Mobile Service Identity (MMSI) was changed to mimic the one of Homoda K, which traveled from the United Arab Emirates to Pakistan.
Some argue that switching MMSI numbers is not actually AIS hacking and that it’s a common issue in vessel tracking and identification. However, the incident does show that some work needs to be done as far as the security of ship tracking systems is concerned.
Trend Micro researchers have demonstrated that AIS vulnerabilities can be exploited by cybercriminals for various purposes.
For instance, hackers can create fake vessels. An example provided by the experts describes a scenario in which cybercriminals place a fictitious Iranian ship packed with nuclear cargo on the US coastline.
Pirates, such as the ones in Somalia, can also put such hacking techniques to good use, the researchers have warned.