Mobile satellite communications provider Inmarsat has showcased its new Fleet Secure service at London International Shipping Week. Fleet Secure is[ds_preview] the maritime industry’s first and only fully-managed service to detect vulnerabilities, respond to threats and protect ships from widespread cyberattack. Fleet Secure will be commercially launched as a standard option on Inmarsat’s Fleet Xpress service.
Fleet Secure is a Unified Threat Management (UTM) and monitoring service that will power cyber resilience at sea, offering vessel owners and managers continuous transparency on the status of their digital security and a 24/7 response to cybercrime. It detects external attacks via high-speed satellite broadband connectivity, while also protecting vessel networks from intrusion via infected USB sticks and crew devices connected to the onboard LAN. According to Inmarsat Fleet Secure will seamlessly integrate with Fleet Xpress for no additional outlay on hardware and no impact on the customer’s contracted bandwidth.
The UTM is powered by Singtel subsidiary Trustwave, a provider of information security solutions, and is available in a choice of three service levels. Service levels include a fully-managed Gold standard, with real-time threat monitoring and analysis, including immediate notifications to the customer with high severity level security threats followed up by telephone to escalate threat management.
Silver level includes daily review and threat analysis, and Bronze level enables users to self-check the vessel’s network status via an online portal. The UTM combats viruses and blocks access to unsafe websites, isolating an infected area of the network to prevent it from spreading to other systems onboard.
Inmarsat has also singned an MoU with Samsung Heavy Industries to leverage the »smart ship« connectivity offered by Fleet Xpress at the vessel construction stage. The MoU envisages the South Korean yard installing Inmarsat-approved terminal hardware and offering applications to cover remote machinery diagnostics and CCTV services, to leverage the satellite communications platform’s capabilities from the moment the ship is delivered.
The new service, which has been christened »Smart Ship« by SHI, will allow owners to enhance efficiency by harvesting data from hull-monitors and equipment sensors onboard in real-time, utilising Inmarsat’s dedicated bandwidth for Certified Application Providers (CAPs).
Subject to a definitive agreement, SHI will retain remote connections to vessels, while Inmarsat will support SHI’s services through a dedicated Certified Application Provider (CAP) subscription. Through its CAP programme, Inmarsat aims to support and enable products that become part of an eco-system of applications to broaden and enhance services beyond connectivity and enable »value-adds« for end-users. Applications covering real-time analysis of data for engine monitoring, weather information and fuel consumption rates can deliver real gains in operational efficiency, safety and compliance, IT security and crew welfare. The CAP programme is part of Inmarsat’s strategy to support the global adoption of the Internet of Things (IoT) in the maritime market, using the unique Fleet Xpress service.
In mid-September, Inmarsat selected Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) as the launch provider for the first satellite in the Inmarsat-6 fleet (Inmarsat-6 F1). The satellite, which is under construction by Airbus Defence and Space, is scheduled for launch in 2020 using MHI’s H-IIA launch vehicle. Inmarsat’s sixth-generation (I-6) fleet will be the first to feature dual-payload satellites; each supporting L-band and Ka-band (Global Xpress) services. The I-6 satellites represent a step change in the capacity of Inmarsat’s L-band services and will support a new generation of L-band capabilities, from advanced global safety services and very low cost mobile services, to Internet of Things (IoT) applications.
