Act of cyberattack?

SINGAPORE: A spate of incidents involving US warships in Asia, including a deadly collision this week off Singapore, has forced the navy to consider if cyberattackers might be to blame.

While some experts believe that being able to engineer such a collision would be unlikely, given the security systems of the US Navy and the logistics of having two ships converge, others say putting the recent incidents down to human error and coincidence is an equally unsatisfactory explanation.

The chief of US naval operations Admiral John Richardson said on Monday he could not rule out possible outside interference or a cyberattack being behind the USS John S. McCain collision, but said he did not want to prejudge the inquiry.

His broader remarks suggested a focus on “how we do business on the bridge”.

“We’re looking at every possibility,” Richardson said, when asked about the possibility of a cyberattack, adding “as we did with Fitzgerald as well”.

In June, the USS Fitzgerald and a Philippine-flagged cargo ship smashed into each other off Japan, killing seven sailors.

There were also two more, lesser-known incidents this year – in January USS Antietam ran aground near its base in Japan and in May, USS Lake Champlain collided with a South Korean fishing vessel. Neither caused injury.

Commander of the US Pacific Fleet Admiral Scott Swift has refused to rule out sabotage in Monday’s incident, saying all possibilities are being examined, including the possibility of a cyberattack.

Analysts are divided on the issue, with some believing US Navy crews may simply be overstretched as they try to tackle myriad threats in the region, and pointing to the difficulties of sailing through waterways crowded with merchant shipping.

But others believe something more sinister may be afoot.

Itar Glick of international cybersecurity firm Votiro, said the incidents suggested that US Navy ships’ GPS systems could have been hacked, causing them to miscalculate their positions. – AFP