The companies whose vessels have been struck in the Strait of Hormuz have been receiving fraudulent messages promising safe passage through the waterway in exchange for cryptocurrency, Greek maritime risk management firm MARISKS has warned. The Strait of Hormuz in West Asia has been at the centre of global geopolitics after the US maintained its blockade of Iranian ports. On the other side, Iran has lifted and then re-imposed its blockade of Hormuz, through which roughly a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas passes. As the second round of peace talks between Iran and the US is about to be organised in Pakistan, Tehran, which controls the chokepoint, has proposed tolls on vessels to safely transit. However, Reuters, which tried to verify the same, was not able to track companies that had received the message. Alert issued MARISKS on Monday issued an alert warning shipowners that unknown actors, claiming to represent Iranian authorities, had sent some shipping companies a message demanding transit fees in cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin or Tether, for “clearance”. In its statement, the firm said that these specific messages were a scam, and the message was not sent by Iranian authorities. There was no immediate comment from Tehran on the matter. MARISKS said that it believed that at least one of the vessels, which tried to exit the strait on Saturday and was hit by gunfire, was a victim of the fraud. What the message says? The fraudulent message said, “After providing the documents and assessing your eligibility by the Iranian Security Services, we will be able to determine the fee to be paid in cryptocurrency (BTC or USDT). Only then will your vessel be able to transit the strait unimpeded at the pre-agreed time.” What is the current situation? According to several media reports, hundreds of ships and about 20,000 seafarers remain stranded in the Gulf after the West Asia war started. On April 18, when Iran briefly opened the strait subject to checks, ships tried to pass, but at least two of them, including a tanker, reported that Iranian boats had fired shots at them, forcing the vessels to turn around. Post navigation ‘Milk prices stable in India despite West Asia crisis’:Govt actively monitoring situation on the ground India’s fertilizer production decreased by 25% due to Iran war:What are reasons for decline in production what will be its impact?
