Expert Urges Caution on Cranes, Other Port Infrastructure Amid Growing Cyberthreats

Mark Montgomery, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a nonprofit think tank, has warned that U.S. ports are in danger from cyberattacks despite the U.S. government’s focus on bolstering the cybersecurity of critical infrastructure.

In an interview, Montgomery said the number of cybersecurity incidents at U.S. ports, waterways and land-side connections has increased over the last few years. A 2023 report by the Cyberspace Solarium Commission indicated that a cyberattack could cripple a U.S. maritime ecosystem, which supports more than 30 million jobs, StateScoop reported.

In particular, Montgomery urged the federal government to address the threat from China-manufactured cranes used extensively in U.S. ports. Montgomery and other experts have indicated that the Chinese cranes and the software used to operate them are vulnerable to cybersecurity risks.

They fear that foreign actors can remotely control or disable the cranes, leading to chaos at the nation’s ports. 

President Joe Biden’s government has called for $20 billion in funding for cranes and other port infrastructure and cybersecurity over the next five years.