Maritime Wifi Security. How Secure Is Your Vessel?

Lots of techno geeks like myself scan for an open network while waiting for an airplane

, in a hotel, or in a restaurant. It is getting easier to log on and surf the internet especially with the invention of the personal cellular WiFi hot spot. Business travelers like me have the personal responsibility of securing our records on our laptops whether it is in locked folders or secure logons etc. Often times I have experienced traveling to a vessel; I was able to easily log onto their (or another vessels) wireless network. Yachts are quickly becoming corporate Americas floating office. Sealing deals in international waters and transporting clients to exotic places. Providing broadband services for the guests is an amenity that is expected these days. The ability to simulcast video conference, surf the web and share documents over VLANs is commonplace in the industry. The weak link in the corporate IT chain often times is the floating palace. The wireless encryption is usually set for WEP (wireless encryption protocol). This is a very weak security protocol at best. I have personally seen hackers gain access to a secured network in 15 seconds. Scary huh! Vessels traveling port to port are exposed to dock walkers, other vessels (often times owned by wealthy IT guys) and frequently in close proximity to hotels. You can only imagine the exposure your wireless network can experience. To explain it in money terms; if an illegal access to a wireless network triggers a satellite phone to inadvertently dial out. The owner of that terminal will be charged in excess of $13/ MB. That is thousands of dollars an hour a hacker can be surfing the internet using your dime. It does not take much. That being said if your personal database, corporate database, or just your family pictures are accessed what is that worth to you? Securing that vessels network is critical. Consult your IT manager. Ask the obvious questions. Make sure the personnel responsible for your vessels network is qualified and experienced enough to protect your vessels assets no matter where you might travel.

by: Brian Coffin

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