Cyber security threat to US ports

‘The critical infrastructure gap: US port facilities and cyber vulnerabilities’ study from the Brookings Institute has revealed that a cyber disruption at the nation’s largest seaport complex of Los Angeles and Long Beach would hit 20% of the US marine transportation system.

“In just a matter of days store shelves throughout the country would start to run empty, and the movement of 17m Southern Californians, along with their economy, would be idled,” the report found.

Los Angeles (pictured) was highlighted for its lack of cyber-security vulnerability assessment and cyber incident response plan.

“Like many other ports in this study, physical security is the primary focus of the security forces, and though many of its security and other systems rely on networked systems, cyber-security is viewed as an IT function that lies outside the security portfolio,” said the report.

In its conclusions the study called for Congress to pass legislation to give the US Coast Guard authority to enforce cyber-security standards for maritime critical infrastructure; adoption of cyber-security standards for port facilities; and for the Department of Homeland Security to structure a grant program to incentivise cyber-security projects, among other recommendations.