Vessel Reports ‘Electronic Interference’ Incident in Persian Gulf

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) office reported an “electronic interference” incident involving a merchant ship in the Persian Gulf.

The incident is the first of its type reported by the agency after informing shipping of the threat back in November 2023.

“UKMTO has received a report of a vessel experiencing disruption to electronic navigation systems (GPS/AIS) between [April 2 and April 3], 95NM east of Las Al Zour, Saudi Arabia,” UKMTO’s advisory said.

The incident comes after the UKMTO issued a notice to shipping on November 4, 2023, warning vessel Masters of the threat and requesting notification of any such incidents.

The U.S. Maritime Administration issued a global Maritime Security Communications with Industry (MSCI) advisory to shipping in October informing mariners of significant GPS interference and AIS “spoofing” incidents globally. However, that advisory expired on March 30, 2024.

AIS spoofing is when a ship’s Automatic Identification System (AIS) is manipulated to broadcast incorrect data.

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