By A Correspondent

New Delhi: India’s Chief of the Naval Staff, Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi, has issued a strong warning on the growing cyber threats facing India’s maritime infrastructure, urging that cybersecurity must be embedded into the “very DNA” of maritime operations to safeguard national and economic security.

Speaking at the Indian Navy’s Cyber Security Seminar on Oct. 16, 2025, Admiral Tripathi underscored that the weaponisation of digital systems poses as grave a risk to the maritime sector as traditional naval threats.

“The digital revolution is bringing unprecedented efficiency, but also new vulnerabilities. Because while the Internet of Things is the trend that drives progress, the weaponisation of everything is the one that defines risk,” Admiral Tripathi said, highlighting the fragile digital fabric on which modern maritime operations depend.

He noted that today’s maritime ecosystem, from smart ports and AI-driven logistics to autonomous navigation and remote diagnostics, runs on interconnected networks that are increasingly susceptible to cyberattacks.

“Every vessel, every crane, every port terminal is now a floating computer network,” he said. “And a few keystrokes can bring an entire port to a standstill.”

Drawing attention to global incidents, the Naval Chief cited the 2023 cyberattack on DP World Australia that disrupted nearly 40% of the country’s container trade, and the targeting of Iran’s shipping network earlier this year.

The 2024 Maritime Cybersecurity Report, he said, recorded “over 50 billion firewall events globally, 1,800 vessels targeted, and 178 ransomware incidents — each costing over half a million dollars on average.”

“These are not merely attacks on systems. They are strikes on the very arteries of the global economy,” he cautioned, adding that cyber disruptions at sea or in major ports can ripple across global supply chains, distort markets, and unsettle diplomatic equations.

For a country like India — with 12 major ports, over 200 non-major ports, and an 11,000-kilometre coastline — the implications are significant. Admiral Tripathi said the need of the hour is to build a “digitally fortified maritime ecosystem” aligned with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of a Digital India, where cybersecurity is integral to national security.

Outlining two key imperatives, the Naval Chief first stressed that cybersecurity must be designed into maritime systems from inception, not added later. “Every maritime digital system — from design to operationalisation — must be shaped by principles of resilience, redundancy, and robust safeguards,” he said.

Secondly, he called for faster, more coordinated responses across government agencies, ports, and international partners. “Speed will be our greatest strength in addressing cyber challenges,” he said. “Every lesson learnt by one agency must become protection for all.”

Admiral Tripathi reaffirmed that the Indian Navy is committed to strengthening cyber resilience and has already initiated multiple measures toward that goal.

As India’s maritime ambitions expand under initiatives such as the Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047, Sagarmala, and PM Gati Shakti, Admiral Tripathi’s remarks serve as a timely reminder that the nation’s economic and strategic progress depends as much on digital defence as it does on naval strength.

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