Dive Brief:
- The Biden administration issued an executive order Wednesday to shore up cybersecurity at U.S. port facilities, part of a larger strategy to improve maritime cybersecurity, strengthen supply chains and raise the nation’s industrial base.
- The U.S. Coast Guard will have the express authority to respond to malicious cyber activity in the nation’s marine transportation system, the White House said. The order will also require the prompt reporting of cyber threats and cyber incidents involving a vessel, harbor, port or waterfront facility.
- The Biden administration will invest more than $20 billion into port infrastructure over five years as part of a plan to help bring manufacturing capacity back to the U.S. One of its goals is to create safe and secure cranes operating at port facilities.
Dive Insight:
The executive order comes at a time of heightened tension over nation-state threats to U.S. critical infrastructure and larger security concerns about how key industries are dependent on overseas supply chains.
U.S. authorities in late January warned that nation-state hackers linked to the People‘s Republic of China are burrowing their way into key U.S. sectors’ IT infrastructure to launch a potential diversionary attack in the event of military action in the Asia-Pacific region.
The potential risks to port facilities has been a growing concern relating to maritime security and the stability of the global supply chain.
“Right now, America’s ports employ 31 million Americans, contribute $5.4 trillion to our economy and are the main domestic point of entry for cargo entering the United States,” Anne Neuberger, deputy national security advisor for cybersecurity and emerging technology, said in a media call Tuesday afternoon. “The continuity of their operations has a clear and direct impact on the success of our country, our economy and our national security.”
Ship-to-shore cranes manufactured by China currently make up about 80% of the cranes at U.S. ports and present a serious cyber risk as they can be controlled, serviced and programmed from remote sites.
The U.S. Coast Guard issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that will include minimum standards for port cybersecurity.
Experts from the Foundation for Defense of Democracies have testified before Congress and issued reports about the risks posed by weak security at the nation’s port facilities.
“The cybersecurity of our maritime transport sector is a key element of military mobility and contributes significantly to continued economic productivity,” Mark Montgomery, a retired rear admiral and senior director of FDD’s Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation, said in a statement.
