Matt Burgess Security Mar 2, 2026 1:34 PM Attacks on GPS Spike Amid US and Israeli War on Iran New analysis shows that attacks on satellite navigation systems have impacted some 1,100 ships in the Middle East since the US and Israel attacked Iran on February 28. Photograph: GIUSEPPE CACACE/Getty Images Save this story Save this story Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz —the narrow but vital oil trade route in the Middle East—has almost ground to a halt since the start of the United States and Israel’s war against Iran . Tankers in the region have faced military strikes and a spike in GPS jamming attacks, a new analysis says. Since the first US-Israeli strikes against Iran on February 28, more than 1,100 ships operating across the Gulf region have had their GPS or automatic identification system (AIS) communications technology disrupted, says Ami Daniel, the CEO of maritime intelligence firm Windward. Ships have been made to appear as if they were inland on maps, including at a nuclear power plant, the firm says. The analysis comes as maritime officials have warned of a “critical” risk to ships operating in the region and as the initial conflict has quickly expanded to involve countries across the Middle East. At least three tankers in the region have been damaged in the conflict. “We’re seeing a lot of GPS jamming,” Daniel says of shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding areas. The levels of electronic interference are “way above the baseline” of usual interference, he says. “It's becoming very dangerous to go in and out.” Over the last few years, attacks against GPS and navigation systems have been on the rise —largely driven by the wars in Ukraine and Gaza . They can impact people’s phones or devices, but also disrupt the safety and navigation systems in planes and ships. The electronic interference largely comes in two forms: jamming and spoofing . During jamming attacks, satellite signals are overwhelmed so that positioning data isn’t available. Whereas spoofing can create false signals that make an object appear incorrectly on a map—for instance, making ships appear as if they are inland at airports . Inaccurate location data can lead to ships running off course, potentially increasing the chances of them crashing into other tankers, running aground, or causing damaging oil spills. In warzones, electronic interference is often used to try and disrupt the navigation systems of drones or missiles, which can rely on location data to find and hit their targets. Analysis of shipping data by Windward found that there has been an “escalating” level of electronic interference across Iranian, United Arab Emirates, Qatari, and Omani waters since the initial strikes on February 28. Daniel says that the majority of the activity the company has identified so far has been jamming rather than spoofing. The company’s analysis says it has identified around 21 “new clusters” where ships have had their AIS data jammed in recent days. “Ships were falsely positioned at airports, a nuclear power plant, and on Iranian land, creating navigation and compliance risks,” a report from the firm says. “AIS signals have also been diverted to the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant and nearby waters, while hundreds of other vessels are creating circle-like patterns off UAE, Qatari, and Omani waters.” GPS and AIS interference within the Strait of Hormuz and the surrounding area is not new. In June 2025, as Israel and Iran exchanged missile fire , significant jamming in the region was reported . While almost all commercial air travel has been grounded around the Middle East, there have been signs of electronic interference on aircraft flying ahead of and around the strikes. “There are at least six new spoofing signatures in the Middle East,” says Jeremy Bennington, vice president of positioning, navigation, and timing strategy and innovation at technology firm Spirent Communications. “Hundreds of flights have been impacted. However, that decreased significantly over the weekend as flights have been canceled.” However, the greatest jamming risk—at least currently—appears to be to ships in the area. A notice from the Joint Maritime Information Center (JMIC) on March 1 says the situation in the area is “critical” and that physical and electronic attacks on ships are “almost certain.” “Significant GNSS interference continues across the Strait of Hormuz approaches, Gulf of Oman, and the southern Arabian Gulf. Observed impacts include positional offsets, AIS anomalies, and intermittent signal degradation,” the JMIC notice says, referring to Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), which covers all satellite navigation setups. “Under current aerial threat and added navigational challenges due to congestion, degraded positional integrity acts as a risk amplifier, increasing probability of navigational incident or miscalculation.” As the immediate conflict continues to expand, there is a chance that greater levels of GPS and AIS interference will happen. “The bigger the radius of the attacks are, the bigger the jamming, and the bigger the jamming, the more risk there is,” Daniel says. 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