Whilst technological advances undoubtedly provide greater operational efficiencies and opportunities for port and terminal operators to mitigate their exposure to theft and fraud, unfortunately they equally benefit criminal organisations. As invasive cyber technology becomes more widely available, a greater risk to legitimate trade is emerging, exposing
operators in the supply chain to economic and commercial damage.
Supply chain vulnerability
The ingenuity of thieves and fraudsters has always surprised unsuspecting victims. The stakes are high and it is clear that the international supply chain, which by its nature facilitates movements across borders, is being targeted in order to fulfil the trafficking of people and drugs, as well as other illegal trades such as dumping waste and intercepting valuable cargoes.
Therefore, ports are increasingly a focal point for such activity. Criminal organisations are able to launch such attacks from anywhere in the world. At one extreme they are able to
target the largest facilities and institutions and, at the other, could empty an individual’s bank account. Cyber security affects every class of business. You may think that you will not be affected by this, but the chances are that you will. Recent reports have now identified another approach regarding IT based theft. Going beyond simply misleading operators into thinking they are dealing with a legitimate company through the use of internet based clearance web sites, it has been established that cyber criminals may access and take control of operators’ IT systems, extracting…
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