The shipping industry’s increasing reliance on digitisation and the internet has made it more vulnerable to cyberattack, according to cybersecurity website Dark Reading.

Another cybersecurity website, Cyberowl, estimated that last year, the number of maritime cyber-breaches shot up, with the average ransomware price being around $3.2 million.

To tackle the problem Bermudian-based firm ShorelineHudson – formed by a recent partnership between three local firms, will provide a one-stop shop for cyber insurance services for the shipping world.

Chairman Simon Scupham said the amalgamation between Shoreline and HudsonAnalytix allowed them to provide risk management services and insurance cover, supported by Acrisure’s cyber team.

“An important objective for any shipowner, operator, port or terminal is to have systems in place that will be resilient against sophisticated cyberattacks,” Mr Scupham said. “This is not only good corporate practice but is becoming mandated under maritime rules and regulations.”

Insurance cover is further protection but insurers have prerequisites, before underwriting such risk. It is a matter of finding the right solutions but ship owners are notorious for being tight-fisted with money, he said.

“A cyberattack is one of those things that people do not think is ever going to happen to them,” Mr Scupham said. “When it does happen, it is too late.”

ShorelineHudson said there was at least one major maritime cyber incident each month but often the related parties preferred to keep things quiet.

“Maersk was probably the most famous cyber event in the marine world,” Mr Scupham said.

In 2017, an untargeted ransomware infection hit shipping giant Maersk, crippling every function critical to the organisation’s survival. The attack cost Maersk between $200 million and $300 million, with the ransomware virus itself, Notpetya, causing $10 billion of damage globally.

Cyber-risk experts speculate that a cyberattack could have caused the March 10 cargo ship collision between the American MV Stena Immaculate and the Portuguese Solong in the North Sea, near North Yorkshire.

After several explosions, 36 people had to be rescued and one was admitted to hospital. Another person is missing, presumed dead.

The US have not ruled out foul play. Meanwhile, Britain arrested and charged the Solong’s Russian captain, Vladimir Motin with gross negligence manslaughter.

Paul Scope, the chief executive of Acrisure’s Bermuda office, said the incident could have involved his company if it had happened in US waters.

“It depends on if it was one of our ships,” Mr Scope said. “It shows the possibility for incidents that will need our services, through compliance, analytical services or insurance.”

Cynthia Hudson, the president of ShorelineHudson, said not all cybersecurity incidents happened on cargo ships.

“These incidents are dangerous because systems can be spoofed and information can be changed,” she said. “Suddenly a vessel’s security is potentially compromised. Acrisure sees these kinds of things from a non-maritime point of view. Simon and I want to bring up the visibility on the maritime side, which speaks to Bermuda’s interests. You are living full blast in a maritime environment.”

Mr Scupham said a combination of education, risk identification and management was needed to help the situation.

“The insurance side of things helps shipping owners to get some sleep at night,” he said. “We are honing in on what we are going to be doing in this space.”

An October report from cybersecurity organisation Marlink revealed a sharp increase in command and control attacks, botnet assaults and phishing attempts in the maritime world.

While monitoring 18,000 ships, Marlink’s security operations centre registered 23,400 malware detections and 178 ransomware attacks in the first half of 2024. Security alerts rose to 1.4 million and the SOC managed 79 major security incidents.