MCAD Maritime Cyber Attack Database
Year2025 |
MonthDecember |
Reference number20251220 |
Impact areaVessel |
Incident locationCaribbean Sea |
Incident countryVenezuela, Trinidad & Tobago |
Victim countryUS, Venezuela, Trinidad & Tobago |
Victim identityCommercial shipping operators; civilian aircraft; tanker fleet transiting Caribbean; US naval vessels; Venezuelan military installations |
Victim TypeCommercial maritime operators; civilian aviation sector; international shipping companies |
MethodGPS Jamming, GPS Spoofing |
Attacker countryUS, Venezuela |
In December 2025, escalating geopolitical tensions between the United States and Venezuela triggered a large-scale GPS jamming and spoofing campaign affecting civilian maritime and aviation traffic across the Caribbean. The US military, including the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier strike group, deployed GPS jamming as a defensive countermeasure against potential drone and missile attacks, while Venezuelan armed forces similarly jammed signals around critical infrastructure (military bases, oil refineries, power stations) in response to perceived US military threats. The electronic warfare operations caused widespread disruption: approximately 20% of Caribbean flights experienced GPS navigation failures; multiple commercial vessels reported 4+ hour GPS signal loss; AIS signals were manipulated showing vessels at false positions; at least one near-collision occurred between a civilian aircraft and a US military plane due to GPS/navigation failures; tanker operations were delayed with at least six vessels engaging in AIS spoofing or disabling transponders; and multiple documented incidents of vessels forced to navigate manually using radar and visual bearings. The incident represents the first large-scale military GPS jamming campaign directly and intentionally affecting civilian maritime and aviation infrastructure in the Western Hemisphere, highlighting the spillover effects of geopolitical conflict on commercial transportation networks. Both the Trump administration's enhanced enforcement against Venezuelan sanctions evasion and Venezuela's military response have transformed the Caribbean into an active electronic warfare zone.
