FBI confirms two Texas-bound oil tankers hit by hackers who disabled coms and put the engines into overdrive

FBI and US Coast Guard boarded tanker VL Prosperity after foreign cyber compromise indications
Iranian media claimed attackers sabotaged engine systems and communications; Kohaku vessel also affected
No group claimed responsibility; US agencies investigating “malicious cyber activity” on targeted ships

Last month, two tankers heading for the United States were hit by a cyberattack, forcing the FBI and Coast Guard to board at least one of the vessels and investigate.

The first vessel is called VL Prosperity, which was allegedly transporting 2.3 million barrels of oil. It is a Liberian crude oil tanker, travelling from Egypt’s Sidi Kerir Oil Terminal towards Galveston, Texas, where it was supposed to dock on August 24. On its route, lasting roughly 25 days, it passed through the Strait of Gibraltar.

Some three days before arriving, it requested assistance from law enforcement, prompting a “highly specialized team” of FBI and Coast Guard cyber experts to board. The ship is currently sitting in the Gulf of Mexico.

Iranians (indirectly) claiming responsibility

“On August 21, a highly specialized team – comprised of USCG Law Enforcement personnel, USCG Cyber Protection Team members, a vessel inspector, and FBI Cyber Action Team operators – embarked the vessel to conduct a comprehensive cyber security boarding and investigation,” a US Coast Guard spokesperson told Cybernews.

The spokesperson also said the team’s activity is “designed to ensure the integrity of the vessel’s operational and information technology systems.” The Coast Guard apparently saw “indications that the vessel’s network were compromised by foreign cyber actors.” It later described the incident as “malicious cyber activity.”

The second vessel in question is called Kohaku, flying under the flag of the Marshall Islands. It was travelling towards Texas to load liquefied petroleum gas, as per Wall Street Journal, and has been sitting near Malta for the past couple of days. At press time (Friday morning), it was travelling through the East Mediterranean Sea.

So far, no threat actors have publicly claimed responsibility for these attacks. However, the Iranian Mehr News Agency allegedly hinted the attack was a “message from Iran’s “Resistance Front” to Washington and the broader Middle East.”

The same publication – also the first one to report on the incident and name VL Prosperity as one of the victims – said the attackers infiltrated engine-room systems, reduced the engine’s cooling flow, increased the engine speed, and disabled the ship’s fuel and engine-oil tank, all citing an unnamed crew member. Apparently, the ship’s communications were knocked offline for a day and a half, as well.