Strengthening Security Readiness Across the Tanker Energy Sector Through OCIMF’s Focused Inspection Campaign

Maritime security can no longer be defined by geographic boundaries. Avoiding certain waters once meant avoiding most threats, but that assumption no longer holds. Threats to seafarers and vessels develop quickly and across regions once thought predictable, with drones, loitering munitions, piracy, criminal boarding and cyber interference among them.

Some are new, some well-established, yet all call for sustained, proactive and practised readiness.

This is why OCIMF launched the Focused Inspection Campaign (FIC) on vessel hardening and security preparedness in its SIRE 2.0 tanker inspection programme.

The goal is simple: focus the reach of OCIMF’s inspection programme to build a clearer view of how well security measures are being applied on board and how confidently crews can rely on them during uncertain moments.

Leveraging Real-world Data

The ability to use SIRE 2.0 to collect shipborne data delivers on one of the primary objectives of transitioning the well-established SIRE inspection programme into a digitalised regime – it can be readily adapted to investigate emerging risks.

The system was designed to use a risk-based algorithm to compile a unique questionnaire to assess each vessel, so there are no irrelevant questions. There are two main types of questions in the question library to draw from: core questions and rotational questions. An existing rotational question may be assigned to every inspection for a fixed period in response to an incident or industry trend in the form of a campaign question.

Question 7.2.1. on vessel hardening and access control procedures has now been made into a ‘campaign question’ so that it will be compiled into every inspection report, meeting the conditional applicability under the Pre-Inspection Questionnaire.

The basics aren't complicated.

• Strong watchkeeping.

• Sensible mitigations, access and control.

• Realistic drills.

• Updated threat and risk assessments.

• Knowing exactly where to muster.

• Making sure vessel hardening measures are understood, not just installed.

These habits are what secure operations look like.

These measures rely not only on equipment, but on consistent practice and regular attention, which is why the FIC focuses on how they are applied in routine operations on board.

These fundamentals reflect the guidance set out in BMP Maritime Security (BMP MS). The document focuses on simple, reliable measures that make unauthorised boarding more difficult and give crews more time to respond.

Engraining a Consistent Safety Culture

OCIMF does not direct ship operations or mandate defensive measures. That responsibility stays with owners, operators and the authorities that oversee them. Its role is to provide guidance, promote best practice and help industry understand how well those practices are being applied on board.

Anyone who has worked at sea knows that preparedness isn't just about equipment. It's about people understanding what to do and why, and how to coordinate quickly if something changes. A crew that understands the intent of best practice guidance uses it well. A crew that doesn't could hesitate at the wrong moment.

New threats emerge with very little warning. A ship can be nowhere near a conflict zone and still face a standoff risk. Cyber incidents can silently unfold. Threat actors vary widely. Some are deliberate others act when opportunity appears. OCIMF cannot influence capability or intent but it can influence how prepared vessels are when circumstances change.

Security risks today are spread across regions. By applying the FIC framework globally, the industry builds a clearer baseline of what good readiness looks like. Patterns become easier to identify, share and address. Through the FIC, the aim is to build a stronger understanding of maritime preparedness in practice so that improvements can be made in best practice guidance. Shared awareness will help the sector respond more consistently.

A Process of Continuous Improvement

The purpose of the FIC is not to penalise operators that are unprepared, but to help us all understand why and where there are weaknesses in hardware, processes or human factors in relation to vessel hardening and access control, and ultimately to help operators and crew to adapt.

This is the nature of the cycle of continuous improvement that drives all work at OCIMF - insights from inspection programmes help to shape OCIMF publications and recommendations. The data also informs advocacy work and engagement with industry bodies and regulators. New guidance, likewise, is then accounted for in inspection process updates. These patterns support future guidance and encourage practical improvements across the tanker sector.

This process is important because people working at sea deserve to have confidence in the measures designed to protect them. They deserve procedures that are clear and dependable. And they deserve a culture that treats security as a shared responsibility, not an occasional concern.

Click here to access the BMP MS.