Amid the enormous technological advances accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, cyberattacks on ports around the world have intensified. Therefore, treating cybersecurity as a priority at port terminals is the only way to stop growing hacker attacks on these nerve centers in international logistics chains.
German consulting firm Roland Berger estimates that hacker gangs impose losses and ransoms worth around US$6 trillion a year on organizations around the world. To get an idea of what this amount means, if cyber piracy were a country, it would have the third largest GDP on the planet, behind only the United States and China.
IT gaps
The number of attacks on container terminals has been growing since 2020, the high point of the pandemic. Cybercriminals have taken advantage of increased working from home, which has allowed hackers to identify gaps in companies’ computer systems. In general, the gateway is malicious software that infects the home computers of administrative employees in the port logistics area.
Recent victims of hackers include the Port of Mumbai, India’s biggest; the ports of Durban, Port Elizabeth, Ngqura and Cape Town in South Africa; and the Port of Mucuripe in Brazil.
Investments and insurance
Experts in cyber protection systems point out that port managers still see cybersecurity as a cost and they are not making the necessary investments to mitigate risks.
Insurance is another necessary instrument. Insurers now offer specific cyber insurance policies for ports and shipping. However, reinsurance policies have increasingly severe conditions, making it harder and more expensive to take them out. Intermediate solutions, such as cyber coverage for offices, are being adopted to avoid leaving policyholders completely unprotected.
FIDES Rio 2023
Digital transformation and its impacts on the insurance industry will be among the topics explored at the 38th FIDES Western Hemisphere Insurance Conference, which will take place from September 24 to 26, 2023, in Rio de Janeiro. Business people, experts and public officials will take part in talks, debates and work meetings about this and other key topics for insurers and business in general.
“Insurance for a more sustainable world” will be the central theme of this international event, which will be attended by representatives of the insurance and reinsurance industry from 18 Latin American countries as well as the United States and Spain.