Shipyard security entails measures to safeguard the shipbuilding and repair centers from security threats like sabotage, trespassing, terrorism, espionage, and theft. Maritime security is pivotal in national defense and global trade. In 2025, shipyard security adopts a multifaceted approach that combines physical security measures, cybersecurity measures, advanced technology, and AI surveillance to ensure continued operations and protect assets from various threats.

Overview of Shipyard Security

Shipyard security refers to measures put in place to safeguard shipbuilding and repair facilities from various threats like terrorism, theft, sabotage, unauthorized access, and espionage. Additionally, it prevents any security breaches that compromise classified projects or interfere with ongoing military operations in the shipyard.

Shipyard security is a facet of maritime security that encompasses port security, anti-piracy measures, and cargo protection.

Inadequate security measures in shipyards adversely impact national defense, global trade, and the supply chain. Therefore, these facilities adopt a multifaceted security approach in 2025, whose key characteristics are:

  • Physical control measures
  • Cybersecurity
  • Access control
  • Vessel security
  • Emergency preparedness
  • Surveillance
  • Waterborne security to safeguard the shipyard from water threats like trespassing boats

 The measures protect classified projects and assets and ensure operational continuity.

Common Shipyard Security Threats in 2025

Today, shipyards face multiple security threats. These include:

Physical Threats

Shipyards are ever busy with ships, materials, people, and equipment going in and out. With many people, materials and equipment accessing the facility, there is always a heightened risk of unauthorized access, theft, and vandalism. When this happens, crucial components of the ships being built or repaired can go missing, causing you to incur huge expenses in replacing these parts. Besides, you could attract lawsuits when trespassers endanger themselves by accessing restricted areas.

Cybersecurity Threats

Sensitive data and operating systems in shipyards are nowadays at risk of cyberattacks. Many shipyards today depend on digital operating systems to design and track ships. So, these systems become targets of hackers seeking to obtain sensitive information or data, steal ship designs, interfere with national security defense, and interrupt supply chains.

Insider Threats

Some security threats to your shipyard can come from within and not from without. Insider threats can come from your workers, suppliers, or contractors with access to the shipping facility and systems. An unsatisfied worker can steal sensitive information, or an employee could open a phishing email, exposing the yard’s digital system to a cyberattack.

These are just some of the modern security threats that you could experience in a shipyard. Luckily, when you enlist the services of an experienced shipyard security company, they can evaluate the common risks the facility faces and identify loopholes or vulnerabilities that they can rely on to develop robust security protocols or strategies to mitigate and repel these threats. The strategies employed must comply with the international standards, so you must partner with a security firm that will ensure your security measures comply with these standards.

Elements of Effective Security Strategies

The primary focus areas of shipyard security in 2025 are:

  1. Physical Security Protocols

One major threat shipyards encounter is physical threats. Thankfully, your security company can take several physical security measures to prevent or neutralize these threats.

The first strategy is to control physical access to the shipyard. Most physical threats stem from people, tools, materials, and equipment going in and out of the shipyard. If you can restrict access to the facility, you can successfully keep physical security threats outside. Your security personnel will control access to the facility by ensuring that only authorized persons have access. They can do this by setting up security checkpoints, using keycards, and biometric scanners. You can also restrict and manage visitors to the facility by having a visitors' log. Besides, you can impose a condition that all drivers accessing the facility produce a Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWI) card.

The other strategy to mitigate physical security threats is installing a perimeter fence, gate, and barrier in the maritime facility.  Apart from the physical layer, you can hire a company that provides vehicle patrols to lower the risk of unauthorized access and ship vandalism. Before accessing your facility, criminals usually monitor the facility to identify security patterns and weaknesses they can exploit to enter the shipyard. With patrol officers moving around the facility at different times, criminals find it challenging to plan an attack. The officers are normally in uniforms, so they are visible, and this discourages criminals from committing crimes. Patrols are also proactive, meaning they take steps to prevent security threats instead of a reactive approach.

Another measure for preventing physical threats is the use of surveillance systems. The common systems you can use are:

  • Advanced or smart CCTV cameras
  • Aerial drones
  • Thermal imaging
  • Motion sensors

You can combine these surveillance systems with around-the-clock monitoring by patrol officers to enable you to identify threats in real time and be proactive. Another advantage of installing a surveillance system for physical security is that you can retrieve the footage and share it with law enforcement to help with investigations.

Also, your security company can employ inspection and screening as a measure to curb physical threats in the shipyard. All ships, cargo, and people entering the yard must undergo screening using technology or manually to prevent criminal activities or illicit products.

  1. Improving Technology or Using Advanced Technology

Technology is pivotal in enhancing shipyard security in 2025. Therefore, if you are a shipowner, you should integrate advanced technology into your security systems to avert physical threats and cyberattacks.

Cybersecurity is critical to the success of your business operations. You can thwart cyberattacks by integrating your Safety Management system with integrated risk management. By treating cybersecurity threats with the same seriousness as physical threats, you improve the security of your sensitive data and digital systems.

Also, you can enhance cybersecurity in the yard by securing your operating and information technology systems.

Another cybersecurity measure you can take to enhance security in your facility is to evaluate the cybersecurity threats your shipyard is likely to face. Your security company should have trained IT experts to identify the common threats businesses like yours face, including phishing, ransomware, and malware. Once these cyber threats have been identified, the company should assess the loopholes or weaknesses in its digital systems, such as outdated software and slow network configuration.

After identifying the threats and vulnerabilities of your system, the company should implement cyber protection and identification protocols, such as installing firewalls on your computers, using encrypted networks, network monitoring, and installing intrusion detectors to reduce the risk of hacking, data breaches, and other forms of cyberattacks. Again, access to critical systems should be restricted to ensure only authorized persons can access them, minimizing the risk of cybersecurity threats. 

Even with proper security, systems can go down and data breaches can happen, leading to the loss of sensitive information. Therefore, your security company must have contingency plans and data recovery protocols, like system backups, to prevent loss of crucial data.

Advanced technology is not only used to counter cyberattacks. You can enhance your surveillance by installing AI-powered cameras. These will monitor movements in the shipyard and evaluate unusual security patterns to detect physical threats like trespassing or unusual activity.

In 2025, you can invest in security management software to monitor the movement of your security team, to enhance communication, and to hold them accountable.

Besides, you can automate the shipyard’s access control by installing remote-controlled gates and biometrics. Doing so ensures that only the authorized personnel make their way to the yard.

  1. Personnel Security and Training

The most effective way to enhance security in your shipyard is to hire security personnel with experience in maritime security. When hiring a company for these personnel, inquire whether the officers they will assign to your yard have the certification and any special training for the role. If they have done the same work before, this is the time to know so that you can be sure you are working with security experts in your industry. A shipyard is different from a factory or school. The threats are different, and you want someone with experience handling the kind of threats your business is at risk of experiencing.

Similarly, you should do background checks on your employees, contractors, and suppliers to ensure that no one is compromised. If any of these individuals is compromised and they have access to the shipyard, you will have an insider threat, which you should deal with promptly.

When you want a strong security team that will keep your shipyard safe from all forms of threat, then you must ensure you undergo continuing education or training programs to stay updated with the latest security practices, cyberattacks, and emergency response. Criminals keep developing new ways of committing crimes, especially when it comes to cybersecurity. You must ensure that your staff and the security team are aware of the latest threats to the shipyard and the best way to counter these threats. The appropriate way to do this is to enroll them in continuous training. Besides, you must increase security protocol awareness among all staff, not only the security personnel.

Additionally, you should partner with your shipyard security firm to develop emergency response protocols for emergencies or data breaches. These include evacuation measures in case of a fire or natural disaster to prevent a stampede, communication protocols, and coordination between your security team and law enforcement. However, to develop the right crisis management and emergency response protocols, the security team must do a risk analysis to identify concerns that could easily turn into problems. Once the plan is in place, you should create awareness among all staff so that when an emergency or a crisis happens, everyone understands what they should do. Besides, you should do routine emergency drills so that the employees can understand how to better respond to a crisis in real time.

  1. Collaboration and Coordination

You should collaborate with local law enforcement, like the police, the coast guard, and emergency services, because you need them to improve the security of the facility and emergency preparedness. You can conduct joint drills with these agencies to improve preparedness, depending on the security threat your shipyard will encounter.

Also, your company should participate in the Harbor Safety Committees (HSCs) and Area Maritime Security Committees (AMSCs), which bring together relevant government agencies, port stakeholders, and industry partners to develop safety protocols and best practices and address safety concerns. That way, you can contribute to the area's maritime security plan.

The Maritime Transportation Security Act (MTSA) regulates shipyards in California. It ensures that these facilities adhere to requisite security protocols, vulnerability assessments, and other plans that help enhance security in shipyards and ports. By adhering to the regulations provided in the Act, you enhance the security of your shipyard.

California enacted the Secure Our Ports Act of 2025 to further enhance security in shipyards and ports by prohibiting entities from countries like China, Iran, and Russia from owning, leasing, or running American ports. Even though the legislation applies to ports, it affects shipyards.

The security of California shipyards in 2025 is multilayered and highly adaptive. It combines the conventional physical security measures with advanced technology and encourages collaboration with government agencies. By implementing these elements, you establish a strong security team and infrastructure that keeps your assets, workers, and operations safe.

Shipyard Security Best Practices

There are several steps you can take to enhance the general security of your shipyard:

Establishing a Robust Security Plan

Creating an actionable security plan is the first step towards enhancing security in your facility. You can do this by partnering with a shipyard security company to conduct a risk evaluation to identify weaknesses and develop security protocols to address the threats. Assessments should be done regularly to continuously improve the existing security measures and adapt to the ever-changing technology and security threats.

Ensure Compliance with National and International Regulations

Several maritime security regulations and protocols exist to keep shipyards safe. Complying with these regulations or standards enhances the security of your facility.

Recruit Your Security Team Wisely

Your security team is critical in defending your shipyard. Therefore, when hiring a security company, do the due diligence. First, the security needs of the shipyard must be understood by doing a risk assessment. After, set security goals that you want to achieve. Once you have the goals, you can begin the search for a reputable company.

Ensure that the company is accredited and licensed to offer services in your industry. Request to see a valid permit from the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services (BSIS). Also, corroborate that the guards to be assigned to your facility are experts in maritime security and have the training or specialization you require to achieve your security objectives. If you need armed guards, ensure they have licenses for these services. You must also avoid liability by ensuring that the company has valid insurance.

Next, find a company that has experience in securing shipyards or ports. These professionals will understand your security challenges and needs, making them the most suitable for the job. Experience alone is not enough; ensure that the company has a strong reputation in the industry and that it has been operating for decades. The longevity in the industry demonstrates that the company is reliable.

Again, you want a company that leverages technology to help you fight the common threats shipyards face in the modern day. Besides, the company should have a multilayered approach to security by integrating traditional physical security measures with the latest technological solutions.

These are just a few pointers that can help you hire the right company to help achieve your security goals.

Collaborate with Local Law Enforcement

Even with the best security team, you collaborate with the police, coast guard, and emergency response personnel because these will help you manage a crisis or emergency better, preventing or minimizing losses. The common emergencies in shipyard facilities include extreme weather, security breaches, and accidents.

Conduct Frequent Security Audits

You should perform security screenings or audits to find weaknesses in your security strategies and fix them before they turn into major problems. Audit your access point, cybersecurity measures, and surveillance systems regularly to improve existing plans, train workers, and stay updated with the latest threats.

Smoothening Shipyard Security Operations with the Help of a Security Company

Shipyards will experience unique security threats in 2025. These challenges require proper planning and effective security strategies to overcome. Luckily, if you hire the right company for the job, managing security will not be a difficult task.

A reputable company will provide you with automated scheduling to ensure that you can effectively assign security guards to various sites based on their skill sets and experience.

A company that offers GPS monitoring of personnel enables you to track the movement of guards during shifts to ensure they remain in their posts. If they leave the assigned site, you will receive a geofencing alert.

Your company should have a mobile application that streamlines communication by enabling instant messages between the security officers and dispatchers. The mobile apps will also simplify reporting, as you can receive security reports and evidence.

Find a Reputable Shipyard Security Company Near Me

Keeping your shipyard secure in 2025 is very challenging because of the various threats it faces. However, with the right security team, you can implement all the elements of shipyard security, like physical security, cybersecurity, and insider threats. So, if you have identified your security threats and goals and need help managing security, Green Knight Security can help. We leverage advanced technology and combine it with conventional security measures to keep your business safe. Call us at 844-457-8326 to discuss your security needs in Los Angeles.