Cyber-risks in maritime container terminals: Analysis of threats and simulation of impacts Authors

Container Terminals (CTs) are the transportation nodes at which containerised freight is transhipped between ships and overland transport. CTs are a vital element of a country’s transportation infrastructure and in the UK they are classed as part of the country’s Critical National Infrastructure (CNI). This article explains the dependence of modern CTs on Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and suggests that this dependence may pose a greater threat to CT operations than it does to other comparable elements of CNI. This opinion is formed by examining the cyber-based threat-actors who may be motivated to disrupt CT operations and the vulnerabilities that they may seek to exploit. Finally, the article demonstrates how the impact of cyber-attacks against CTs can be modelled using Discrete Event Simulation (DES) techniques. It is suggested that the outputs from these simulations could be used to identify and prioritise vulnerabilities at CTs and to support justifications for investment in new and improved control measures.a aThis article is published online by Computer Weekly as part of the 2017 Royal Holloway information security thesis series http://www.computerweekly.com/ehandbook/ Cyber-risks-in-maritime-container-terminals-Analysis-of-threats-and-simulation-of-impacts. It is based on an MSc dissertation written as part of the MSc in Information Security at the ISG, Royal Holloway, University of London. The full MSc thesis is published on the ISG’s website at https://www.royalholloway.ac.uk/isg/ research/technicalreports/technicalreports.aspx. The modern container terminal Shipping currently accounts for the movement of approximately 90% of world trade and Container Terminals (CTs) are instrumental in this endeavour. Recent trends in CT operating models have resulted in the development of ever larger facilities which act as regional hubs for intermodal freight distribution. The result of this trend is that the largest CTs have become increasingly central to global supply chains. The corollary is that they present an increased risk to these supply chains if their operations are disrupted. As the global economy has expanded the volume of freight being shipped has increased accordingly. CTs have had to transform in recent years to achieve the throughputs required to support globalisation. This transformation has been heavily reliant upon ICT. Figure 1 illustrates a typical CT and shows the stages through which containers flow as part of the transhipment process. (The word “section” refers to specific areas of the container yard.) The process sequence remains much the same today as it did in the earliest days of CTs in the 1960s. However, the equipment and technology employed at each of these stages has changed dramatically and today’s CTs are now heavily automated. Two of the most significant developments in CT operations are described below. 1. Automation of Mechanical Handling Equipment (MHE). Modern CTs employ automated systems in every stage of the transhipment process. Semi and fully automated quay-side cranes, yard cranes and Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) are commonly used to unload, stack and move containers. The operational benefits of automated equipment, when compared to manually