Sven Gerhard News

Inadequate protection against cyber risks is becoming a major threat to the maritime sector, increasingly interconnected and dependent from automation. Ports and ships have become target of hackers. Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS) says that cyber risks a growing concern in shipping sector, particularly around e-navigation. The IT risk is now beginning in this area, but soon ports and ships could become attractive targets for hackers, says Captain Rahul Khanna, Global Head of Alliance Marine Risk Consulting (AGCS). Companies must simulate these potential scenarios and identify the correct strategies of risk mitigation, says Khanna. Dr. Other scenarios can see cybercriminals affecting important ports, close the terminal or interfere with container or confidential data.

Container ship safety is under the spotlight with ever-increasing ship sizes, as evidenced by the January 2015 inauguration of the world’s largest container ship, the MSC Oscar (19,224 teu). The length of four football pitches, it can carry 19,000 containers. Yet ships as large as 22,000 teu are expected to be in service soon. Experts in this field say that losing bigger ships could cost $1bn each. Dr. Sven Gerhard, Global Product Leader Hull & Marine Liabilities of Alliance Marine Risk Consulting, Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS) says: “Larger ships can also mean larger losses. Maximum exposure would not necessarily be limited to vessel and cargo value but could also include environmental or business interruption backlash.

In the dead of night, as his fuel tanker sailed through the narrowest section of one of the world's busiest waterways, Captain Thiwa Saman was wrenched from sleep and pitched into a waking nightmare. Three men with guns and swords were banging on his cabin door. Other pirates had already stormed the bridge, seized the duty officer and smashed up the radio and GPS equipment. Over the next 10 hours, mostly in daylight, the pirates held Thiwa and his 13 crew captive while siphoning off 4 million litres of diesel, worth around $2 million on the black market, to another tanker. They even re-painted the name of Thiwa's ship to confuse anyone searching for it. Then they vanished.

But long-term downward trend continues. •    Industry initiatives address passenger vessels as well as the ‘human factor’ on board. Twelve months on from the Costa Concordia incident, a new Allianz report identifies that 106 ship losses were reported worldwide in the 12 months to November 25 2012 - up from 91 ships the previous year but a 27 percent decrease on the ten year average of 146 ships per annum. Despite this long term downward trend, driven by technology, training and regulation and a proactive response from the shipping industry to safety improvement, human error remains the core challenge. In its annual ‘Safety and Shipping Review’ of maritime losses, marine insurer Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS) highlights developments in shipping safety during 2012.

Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS), an insurer of ships and cargo, has released a study suggesting its clients adapt their approach to marine insurance as the threat of piracy off the Horn of Africa continues to grow. In addition, the study points out that crews entering dangerous waters must be prepared to handle an attack, and it calls for a more coordinated solution to the current wave of piracy. In a study entitled “Piracy: An ancient risk with modern faces,” AGCS suggests that special war insurance policies should be used to meet the needs of ships in high risk areas. AGCS also identifies a number of practical responses that crews can take when passing through piracy zones…