Norwegian government’s innovation fund will provide two years’ funding to new project for the development of a cyber-risk management system for ships, initiated by Japanese shipping company NYK and maritime IT innovator Dualog. The funding will enable NYK to carry out cyber security trials on 50 NYK-operated vessels.
In line with the IMO’s guidelines on maritime cyber-risk management, NYK entered a strategic partnership with Dualog in 2017, and has been developing data-sharing between ship and shore, developing the Cepa Shield cyber security project.
The cyber-risk management system developed under the project will be applied to all NYK-operated vessels and will provide multiple layers of risk management. (“Cepa” means onion in Latin.)
The funding will be provided by Innovation Norway, the Norwegian government’s instrument for innovation and development of Norwegian enterprises and industry. The organization supports companies in developing their competitive advantage in domestic and international markets.
The system will enable NYK to grasp from shore the condition of each vessel against any cyber attack coming from the outside.
With the financial support of Innovation Norway over the next two years, the project will carry out trials on 50 NYK-operated vessels.
This forms part of the company’s goals to create new value by taking advantage of digitalization in accordance with its medium-term management plan “Staying Ahead 2022 with Digitalization and Green,” for boosting transport safety, efficiency, and international competitiveness.
In accordance with recent ICT developments, ships remain connected to the internet and continually share data between ship and shore, which presents a significant risk of becoming exposed to cyber threats, such as malware.
With this in mind, the 98th session of the IMO Maritime Safety Committee (MSC 98) approved guidelines on maritime cyber-risk management in June 2017.
The committee recommended that a description of cyber-risk management be included in the safety management systems of shipowners and ship-management companies.
