LNG Tanker Vivit Africa Suffers Suspected Cyberattack in Mediterranean, Third Tanker Incident Since Late August as U.S. Monitors Nearly 20 Ships Globally

The LNG tanker Vivit Africa, carrying fuel from the U.S. to Europe, suffered a systems failure in early September that the crew reported as a suspected cyberattack, according to people familiar with the matter. The vessel, which had loaded cargo at Louisiana's Cameron LNG terminal and sailed across the Atlantic, was traveling east in the Mediterranean and Adriatic Seas toward Italy when the crew were suddenly unable to access some of the internal control systems. Trading giant Vitol Group confirmed it has the ship under a long-term lease but declined to comment further. The vessel has since turned away from Italy and is currently near Tunisia. The incident, reported on September 18, follows other suspected cybersecurity events in late August when two oil and gas tankers off the U.S. coast were boarded by the Coast Guard and FBI due to potential cyberattacks. American officials are now monitoring nearly 20 ships around the world for such threats. The U.S. Coast Guard and FBI boarded two commercial vessels bound for the United States in the Gulf of Mexico in late August after indications that hackers had broken into their computer networks, the agencies said on September 17. The suspected hacking of energy tankers represents an emerging threat layer for maritime energy transport that operates independently of the kinetic attacks, sanctions enforcement, and navigational risks already straining global oil and LNG flows. With LNG tankers carrying critical energy supplies between continents, any compromise of control systems poses risks not only to the vessel itself but also to the broader supply chain and port infrastructure at loading and destination terminals. The timing—amid heightened Middle East tensions and constrained alternative shipping routes—amplifies the potential for cyberattacks to compound physical supply disruptions.