Arms fairs have always been conducive to espionage. And undoubtedly they are more so today than yesterday due to the international context, marked by increasingly fierce competition between the great powers.
In addition, to the risks of espionage are added possible reputational attacks and other interference, which are not necessarily the work of state actors but of government organizations linked to the antimilitarist movement.
Hence the warning sent by the Directorate of Defense Intelligence and Security [DRSD] to the French military naval industry, on the occasion of the Euronaval 2024 exhibition, which will be held between November 4 and 7 in Villepinte.
“This new edition of Euronaval will take place in a hardened geopolitical context, marked by the return of high-intensity clashes and new protest strategies directly involving the armed forces. At the same time, certain states and non-state actors no longer hesitate to pursue their strategic objectives by calling into question geopolitical balances and international law,” explained General Philippe Susnjara, the “boss” of the DRSD, in a note published for the industrialists concerned.
Given the place that maritime operations currently hold, both in the Eastern Mediterranean and in the China Sea or the Red Sea, General Susnjara believes that the “most discriminating technologies in the naval environment” can only attract covetousness, which which is likely to result in an increase in “attempts at espionage and destabilization of exhibiting French companies” and, by extension, in “effects on the capabilities of our forces to carry out their missions at sea and to guarantee our superiority in naval combat.
In its note, the DRSD mentions several cases which have already occurred during the previous edition of Euronaval. And to specify that several operating methods can be followed by malicious actors, namely theft [maquettes, supports informatiques, badges d’hôtel, etc.]the human approach, via a former collaborator, a fake intern or fake journalists [alors que la presse doit pourtant être accréditée]wiretapping attempts and cyber.
Any manager in the naval industry can be affected by espionage attempts, some of which are quite elaborate. Thus, during Euronaval 2022, the computer of a manager of a company specializing in naval welding was hacked after the Wi-Fi network of the hotel where he was staying was hijacked by foreign agents. “Other people staying at this [établissement] occupied mainly by exhibitors at the show, were victims of the same attack,” underlines the DRSD.
To protect against this, it recommends using “equipment dedicated to the salon with restricted rights and equipped with a VPN”, “prioritizing the internet connection via the network” of the company’s operator and to “download applications and updates only on official and secure platforms”.
