According to Lloyd’s, a cyberattack on Asian ports could cost $110 billion

According to a report published by Lloyd’s of London in collaboration with CyRiM (see the video here and the full PDF report here), and relayed by the news agency Reuters, a cyberattack targeting Asian ports could result in losses of up to 110 billion dollars. This amount is roughly equivalent to half of the total economic losses caused by natural disasters in 2018.

It is worth recalling that Lloyd’s specializes in commercial risk insurance. Such risks are generally less insured in Europe and Asia than in the United States.

The scenario used in the report (see page 16) simulates the spread of malicious code transported by ships and subsequently infecting port databases. A cyberattack targeting port infrastructure is included in the short list of risk scenarios examined for the maritime sector. Several ports were already affected by cyber incidents in 2018, with both direct and indirect operational impacts (see our page listing known cyber incidents in the maritime sector).

In the scenario described in the report, the attack would affect 15 ports located in Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, and China. The study estimates that 92% of the associated economic losses—approximately 101 billion dollars—would not be covered by insurance.

Asia hosts 9 of the 10 largest ports in the world (Shanghai, Singapore, Shenzhen, Ningbo-Zhoushan, Guangzhou, Busan, Hong Kong, Qingdao, and Tianjin). As a result, the region represents a critical hub in the global supply chain for many industries, including automotive manufacturing, general manufacturing, and electronics.

According to the report, the economic consequences of such an event would extend far beyond Asia. The continent itself could suffer approximately 26 billion dollars in indirect losses, followed by Europe with around 623 million dollars and North America with approximately 266 million dollars. The final impact would of course depend heavily on the duration of the disruption and on the level of international coordination during the crisis.