The insurance industry today estimates that approximately $60 to $70 million dollars of recreational vessel and marine equipment theft losses occur annually in the United States. These figures do not take into the account the large number of uninsured or unreported vessel losses ..

The aggregate total of insured, uninsured, and "offshore registered" vessel losses is estimated to approach $150 million dollars.

Vessels face many varied security threats simply because they are portable high-value assets. Outright theft of a vessel, followed by the burglary of equipment is the primary concerns. There is a myriad of other ways that a vessel can be targeted by those with bad intent.

Although most of the major terrorist incidents involving transport activities have involved aircraft, there have been incidents on board vessels and there is no doubt that certain categories of ships and shore installations present a theoretically attractive, although often difficult, target for terrorist activities.

	Cruise Liners could be targeted because of their high profile, their flag, ownership, particular destination or nationality of their passengers. Cruise passengers may be perceived as a high income group and this alone could make them a target.
	Tankers, with the political sensitivity of their cargo and the potential environmental impact and resulting wide publicity given to tanker mishaps, are potentially attractive targets, although their size, complexity and the terminals where they call may make boarding difficult. Gas tankers, with their potentially volatile cargoes, might be considered to offer a particularly high profile.
	Roll on Roll off Passenger Ferries may be vulnerable to the use of a car bomb attack, aimed at damaging, disabling or sinking the vessel, causing fire on board and/ or harm to the passengers and the crew.
	Other Ships with Special Cargoes such as those transporting hazardous goods, nuclear materials, industrial waste or livestock could be potentially conspicuous targets.
	Ports and Terminals, such as those handling Oil or Gas, might present attractive targets to terrorists or saboteurs.

An essential part of security is the preparation of contingency plans in response to incidents which could occur and the planning of measures introduced in response to any increase in the level of threat. These plans need to cover different levels of response from the company (operator/ owner) and the master, officers and crew. They may also encompass the establishment of a “Threat Level” procedure, identifying various measures which could be adopted by vessels in response to the perceived level of threat to the vessel in a particular place, at a particular time.

Marine crime prevention is mostly a matter of anticipating potential risks and eliminating them. Most crimes occur when a criminal finds a safe and easy opportunity to strike. Remove the opportunity and you usually prevent the crime. Even in the high-risk settings, aggressive prevention makes successful attacks unlikely.

Threats from terrorism and sabotage are part of the risks faced by the shipping industry. It is sound sense and good seamanship to reduce possible risks and those imposed by terrorists or saboteurs are no exception. The industry is conscious of the dangers that can arise. But in many parts of the world, ships will be obliged to rely on the co-operation of shore authorities over whose security arrangements they will have no influence. It is therefore essential that, at both company and ship level, security measures are maintained at a level commensurate with the threat.

Prime Defence not only train staff in security measures at sea and in port; but also provide security teams for vessels travelling within hot spots around the globe. Linked with our 24 hour fast response teams, Prime Defence can assist operators before, during and after incidents occur.

The International Ship and Port Facility Security Code
In essence, the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code (ISPS Code) takes the approach that ensuring the security of ships and port facilities is basically a risk management activity and that to determine what security measures are appropriate, an assessment of the risks must be made in each particular case.

The purpose of the Code is to provide a standardized, consistent framework for evaluating risk, enabling governments to offset changes in threat with changes in vulnerability for ships and port facilities.

To begin the process, each Contracting Government will conduct port facility security assessments. Security assessments will have three essential components. First, they must identify and evaluate important assets and infrastructures that are critical to the port facility as well as those areas or structures that, if damaged, could cause significant loss of life or damage to the port facility's economy or environment. Then, the assessment must identify the actual threats to those critical assets and infrastructure in order to prioritise security measures. Finally, the assessment must address vulnerability of the port facility by identifying its weaknesses in physical security, structural integrity, protection systems, procedural policies, communications systems, transportation infrastructure, utilities, and other areas within a port facility that may be a likely target. Once this assessment has been completed, Contracting Government can accurately evaluate risk.

This risk management concept will be embodied in the Code through a number of minimum functional security requirements for ships and port facilities.

For ships, these requirements will include:

	Ship security plans
	Ship security officers
	Company security officers
	Certain onboard equipment

For port facilities, the requirements will include:

	Port facility security plans
	Port facility security officers
	Certain security equipment

The requirement for ships and port facilities include:

	Monitoring and controlling access
	Monitoring the activities of people and cargo
	Ensuring security communications are readily available

Because each ship (or class of ship) and each port facility present different risks, the method in which they will meet the specific requirements of this Code will be determined and eventually be approved by the Administration or Contracting Government, as the case may be.

Protecting people in an emergency and managing a crisis have always been priorities for corporations and government agencies. But in today’s high-risk environment, your existing plans may be insufficient.

Government agencies and corporations increasingly turn to Prime Defence for the comprehensive development and implementation of crisis management and emergency response plans. Prime Defence works with its clients to establish command procedures, train employees, co-ordinate rescue and recovery efforts, and to keep operations running.

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