US Coast Guard/FBI board two Texas-bound oil tankers after voyage cyberattacks (VL Prosperity)
SecurityWeek (17 September 2026), citing CBS News / US officials, reports that US Coast Guard and FBI personnel boarded two Texas-bound oil tankers last month after cyberattacks disrupted the vessels en route to the United States. Named ship: Liberian-flagged crude tanker VL Prosperity (left Egypt 1 August en route to Galveston per vessel-tracking cited by CBS). Iran’s Mehr News Agency (20 August) alleged an 7 August Strait of Gibraltar intrusion affecting engine-room systems (coolant/fuel/engine speed), navigation/cargo, and ~30 hours of lost communications — US Coast Guard has not publicly attributed the incident to Iran. A Coast Guard cyber / law-enforcement / FBI Cyber Action Team boarded VL Prosperity the day after Mehr’s report and spent four days aboard; Wall Street Journal reported the second ship boarded 24 August after Gulf of Mexico arrival. Rear Adm. Amy Grable (Coast Guard Cyber Command) told CBS investigators found evidence of a malicious cyber actor on IT/onboard systems and that the tanker was not judged unsafe to operate; ~40–50 similar Cyber Protection Team boardings in the past year. Investigators still assessing whether the two tanker incidents are connected or state-linked. Wire-primary until a Coast Guard/FBI primary release is posted. OT/maritime relevance for AU shippers and ports.
- Product
- Maritime vessel IT/OT (engine-room / navigation / cargo / SATCOM — as alleged in open reporting; not a product CVE)
- Versions
- n/a
- Exploited in Australia?
- unknown
- Patch to
- Maritime operators: segment vessel IT/OT, restrict remote/SATCOM admin paths, monitor engine/navigation anomaly alarms, rehearse cyber boarding/forensics with flag-state guidance
Primary: SecurityWeek — oil tanker cyberattacks / CG–FBI boardings (17 Sep 2026)