Assurance and risk management provider DNV has acquired CyberOwl, a global expert in cyber risk monitoring and threat management for maritime vessels. Together, the two companies will create the world’s largest specialist in cybersecurity for maritime systems, strengthening the cyber defences of the shipping industry.
The partnership comes at a time when the industry must comply with a host of new cybersecurity regulations and invest in incident detection, response and recovery as the increasing deployment of digitally connected systems on ships creates new vulnerabilities. A typical fleet of 30 cargo ships currently experiences an average of 80 cyber incidents per year.
Digital technologies must continue to expand to enable a safer, more efficient and greener shipping industry. But the benefits of digitalization and automation cannot be realized without a robust approach to cyber security. That’s why DNV is putting cyber security at the heart of our growth strategy,” said Remi Eriksen, Group President and CEO, DNV. “Together, DNV and CyberOwl will help mitigate cyber risk and strengthen compliance across the maritime supply chain with services that support all aspects of organizations’ cyber security needs and manage risk at every stage of a vessel’s lifecycle.”
New uniform requirements published this year by the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS) set stricter rules on the measures maritime organizations must take to manage, identify, protect against, detect, respond to and recover from cyber incidents. This is in line with existing International Maritime Organization (IMO) requirements for ship owners, operators and managers to establish cybersecurity management systems. Only half (56%) of maritime professionals are confident in their ability to meet cybersecurity regulatory requirements.
CyberOwl provides ship operators with analytics to identify, monitor and manage cyber threats and demonstrate regulatory compliance. The company’s Medulla platform and managed security services help owners and operators of hundreds of ships discover and maintain their asset inventory, monitor growing cyber risks, learn about unsafe crew actions, and evaluate the effectiveness of their security controls and cyber security policies.
“DNV and CyberOwl are on a mission to strengthen the security posture of the maritime industry by combining our cybersecurity expertise with years of experience in the industry’s technical, operational and commercial realities. DNV has 160 years of maritime tradition, strong engineering expertise and a growing portfolio of cybersecurity services. Combining this with CyberOwl’s deep expertise in threat monitoring and incident management will create a driving force to improve cyber-physical safety, sustainability and resilience in the sector,” said Daniel Ng, CEO of CyberOwl.
The acquisition strengthens DNV’s portfolio of maritime cyber security and emergency response services, creating one of the largest specialist maritime cyber security companies in the world, based in five global shipping hubs: Oslo, London, Singapore, Hamburg and Piraeus.
CyberOwl will partner with DNV’s global network of 3,500 maritime risk experts and 500 cyber security professionals. Together, the two companies will address all aspects of maritime organizations’ cyber security needs, protecting the sector’s demanding IT and industrial control system environments.
DNV’s acquisition of CyberOwl is the latest step in the independent assurance and risk management provider’s cyber security growth strategy. Earlier this year, DNV combined its existing cyber security business with two recent acquisitions, Nixu and Applied Risk, to create DNV Cyber, one of Europe’s fastest growing cyber security services businesses.
CyberOwl will operate separately from DNV’s ship classification business.
Industry Cyber News Desk
Industry Cyber News Desk
