US Sanctions Strip PGSA Website Encryption, Exposing Strait of Hormuz Shipping Data
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Aug 12
US Sanctions Strip PGSA Website Encryption, Exposing Strait of Hormuz Shipping Data
1 articles · Updated · Fox News · Aug 12
Summary
NetBlocks said U.S. sanctions have left Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority without HTTPS encryption, exposing shipowners’ submitted data and payments as vessels seek transit permits through the Strait of Hormuz.
Aug. 11 guidance from the PGSA told users to switch to an unsecured HTTP address and use Firefox, after its May 27 addition to the U.S. Treasury’s sanctions list apparently cut off access to SSL/TLS certificates.
Alp Toker, NetBlocks’ chief executive, said the loss of encryption means logins, forms and transactions can be intercepted, making confidential dealings with the authority far harder and undermining its gatekeeping model.
The authority, created in May to manage ship passage and collect tolls alongside the IRGC, blamed U.S. “political interference” as Washington tightens pressure in the Strait of Hormuz standoff.