Maritime Security Market (2026-2036)

The growth of this market is mainly driven by rising threats to critical undersea infrastructure, attacks on commercial shipping in strategic chokepoints, the persistence of piracy and armed robbery, and mandatory maritime cybersecurity regulations. In addition, AI-enabled maritime domain awareness, the adoption of uncrewed surface and underwater vessels for persistent surveillance, and the shift of ship and port operators toward managed maritime cybersecurity services are further supporting the growth of this market.

The global Maritime Security Market is projected to reach USD 79.6 billion by 2036, driven by threats to cables and pipelines, attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz, persistent piracy, and new mandatory cybersecurity rules for ships and ports.

Asia-Pacific is expected to account for the largest market share of 33.5% in 2026, while Europe is projected to register the fastest growth at a CAGR of 10.3% during the forecast period, and the Nordic & Baltic Countries are projected to register the highest CAGR of any country or sub-region, at 11.5%.

By offering, Systems are expected to account for the larger market share of 68.3% in 2026, whereas Services are projected to register the higher CAGR of 9.4%, as operators turn to risk intelligence and managed cybersecurity services.

By application, Critical Undersea Infrastructure Protection is projected to register the highest CAGR of 13.4%, and by end user, Subsea Cable & Telecom Operators are projected to register the highest CAGR of 15.7% during the forecast period.

The threat environment intensified. The ICC International Maritime Bureau recorded 137 incidents of piracy and armed robbery in 2025, the highest total in four years, and daily transits through the Strait of Hormuz fell to between 9 and 15 vessels in early May 2026 against a historical average of about 138, according to the Joint Maritime Information Center.

Governments responded with new programs and budgets. NATO launched Baltic Sentry in January 2025, the European Commission allocated EUR 347 million to cable security projects, the U.K. launched Atlantic Bastion in December 2025, and the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of July 2025 provided the U.S. Coast Guard with nearly USD 25 billion.

Investment in new maritime security capabilities accelerated. Anduril raised USD 5 billion in May 2026, Saronic closed a USD 1.75 billion Series D in March 2026, ICEYE raised more than EUR 1 billion in June 2026, and HawkEye 360 raised USD 416 million in its May 2026 initial public offering.

The Maritime Security Market comprises the systems and services used to detect, deter, and respond to threats against ports and terminals, commercial vessels, offshore energy installations, undersea cables and pipelines, and coastal waters. The market includes surveillance and tracking systems, detection and screening systems, access control and perimeter security, communication systems, command and control and maritime domain awareness software, underwater detection systems, and counter-drone and counter-uncrewed surface vessel (counter-USV) systems, together with vessel protection, risk assessment and intelligence, consulting and training, maintenance and support, and managed maritime cybersecurity services. Buyers include navies, coast guards, customs and border agencies, port authorities and terminal operators, shipping companies, offshore energy operators, and subsea cable and telecom operators.

The threat environment is the most important factor shaping the market. Houthi forces targeted more than 100 merchant ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden between November 2023 and early 2025, and attacks resumed in July 2026. After the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on 28 February 2026, Iran effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, and the Joint Maritime Information Center recorded 37 confirmed incidents against shipping in the region between 1 March and 3 May 2026. These events have made threat intelligence, voyage risk assessment, vessel hardening, and counter-drone capabilities standard parts of maritime operations.

The seabed has become a security domain in its own right. According to the International Telecommunication Union, submarine cables extend more than 1.7 million kilometers and carry over 99% of international data traffic, and the network experiences approximately 200 faults each year. Damage to the Balticconnector pipeline and the Estlink 2 power cable in the Baltic Sea led NATO to launch Baltic Sentry in January 2025 and the European Union to adopt an Action Plan on Cable Security, creating demand for seabed sensors, fiber-optic sensing, uncrewed underwater vessels, and vessel behavior monitoring.

Government budgets are rising. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute reported that world military expenditure reached USD 2,887 billion in 2025, the eleventh consecutive annual increase, and NATO allies agreed in June 2025 to invest 5% of GDP in defense and security by 2035, of which up to 1.5% may be directed to broader security investments, including the protection of critical infrastructure. At the same time, regulation is turning cybersecurity into a compliance obligation, as the U.S. Coast Guard requires covered vessels and facilities to submit cybersecurity plans by 16 July 2027.

The supply side of the market is changing quickly. Established defense and security contractors such as Kongsberg, Saab, Thales, Leonardo, BAE Systems, Elbit Systems, and Israel Aerospace Industries are being joined by venture-backed companies in autonomy, satellite sensing, and maritime analytics, including Anduril, Saronic, ICEYE, HawkEye 360, Windward, and Kpler. Thales agreed to acquire control of Exail Technologies in July 2026, and Kongsberg demerged Kongsberg Maritime in April 2026 to focus on defense and technology.

The protection of cables and pipelines is the most important new driver of the Maritime Security Market. The Nord Stream pipelines were destroyed in September 2022, the Balticconnector pipeline was damaged in October 2023, and in December 2024 the tanker Eagle S damaged the Estlink 2 power cable and four telecommunications cables in the Gulf of Finland. NATO's Allied Maritime Command reported that Baltic Sentry reduced the response time to suspicious incidents from 17 hours to one hour, and the European Commission allocated EUR 347 million to cable security projects. Demand comes from navies and coast guards as well as cable owners, transmission system operators, and offshore energy companies.

A small number of chokepoints carry a disproportionate share of world trade and energy flows. Houthi attacks in the Red Sea sank four merchant ships between 2024 and 2025, and the 2026 Iran war effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly 20 million barrels of oil per day flowed before the conflict. According to the Suez Canal Authority, canal revenue fell to about USD 3.9 billion in fiscal year 2024/2025 from more than USD 9 billion before the attacks. These events are driving investment in threat intelligence, vessel protection, counter-drone and counter-USV systems, and coordination with naval forces.

The ICC International Maritime Bureau recorded 137 incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships in 2025, compared with 116 in 2024, with the Singapore Straits accounting for 58% of the global total. Although incidents fell to 38 in the first half of 2026, 67 crew members were taken hostage, 94% of them by Somali pirates operating more than 1,000 nautical miles from the coast. Shipping companies respond by hardening vessels, carrying embarked security teams, and subscribing to risk intelligence services, while regional states invest in coastal surveillance and information sharing.

Regulators have moved from voluntary guidance to mandatory requirements. The U.S. Coast Guard's rule on Cybersecurity in the Marine Transportation System took effect on 16 July 2025 and requires covered vessels and facilities to report cyber incidents, train personnel, and submit cybersecurity plans by 16 July 2027. The IACS unified requirements E26 and E27 apply to ships contracted from 1 July 2024, and the EU NIS2 Directive covers maritime transport operators. These requirements create non-discretionary demand for assessments, plan development, training, OT monitoring, and managed security services.

The oceans cover about 71% of the Earth's surface, and many coastal states are responsible for exclusive economic zones several times larger than their land territory. Monitoring these areas with crewed patrol vessels and aircraft is expensive, coastal radars are limited by the horizon, and underwater surveillance is constrained by acoustic physics. Research published in Nature in January 2024 by Global Fishing Watch and partners found that about 75% of the world's industrial fishing vessels were not publicly tracked, and many developing coastal states can fund surveillance only through donor-funded or phased programs.

Maritime security responsibilities are divided among navies, coast guards, customs and border agencies, fisheries authorities, port authorities, and private operators, each with its own mandate, budget, and procurement rules, while jurisdiction at sea depends on the maritime zone and the flag of the vessel. Fragmentation leads to duplicated investments, incompatible systems, and longer procurement cycles, although multinational initiatives and shared data platforms are gradually improving coordination.

Maritime domain awareness is shifting from ships and aircraft toward satellites, data, and software. AI is used to detect vessels in satellite imagery, identify dark vessels, detect ship-to-ship transfers and loitering near infrastructure, and flag identity fraud. ICEYE reported a contracted backlog of EUR 1.5 billion and production of 50 satellites per year, HawkEye 360 reported its first profitable year in 2025, and the U.S. Coast Guard allocated USD 170 million for next-generation maritime domain awareness sensors. These capabilities allow smaller coastal states to achieve wide-area coverage and support sanctions enforcement against shadow fleets.

Uncrewed surface and underwater vessels can remain on station for weeks at a fraction of the operating cost of crewed ships. NATO's Task Force X Baltic deployed more than 60 uncrewed systems in June 2025, Australia signed a five-year AUD 1.7 billion contract with Anduril for Ghost Shark extra-large autonomous undersea vehicles in September 2025, and the U.K.'s Atlantic Bastion program is built around uncrewed vessels and autonomous sensors. These systems are suited to persistent patrol of exclusive economic zones, seabed and cable inspection, harbor protection, and mine countermeasures.

Most shipping companies, port operators, and terminal operators lack the in-house expertise to monitor IT and OT networks continuously and to demonstrate compliance with new regulations. Managed services, including remote security operations centers for fleets, OT monitoring, incident response, and compliance support, allow operators to meet requirements without building large teams. Maritime cyber incidents increased by 103% in 2025, according to CYTUR, and the U.S. Coast Guard's July 2027 deadline for cybersecurity plans is expected to accelerate outsourcing.

Vessel tracking depends on satellite navigation and self-reported AIS data, both of which are increasingly unreliable in contested waters. Windward reported that more than 13,000 vessels were affected by GPS jamming or spoofing in the second quarter of 2025, and interference surged again in the Gulf after February 2026. Vessels involved in sanctions evasion and smuggling also switch off AIS and use fraudulent flags, and the EU had listed 632 vessels of Russia's shadow fleet under its sanctions regime by April 2026.

Even when suspicious activity is detected, attributing it to a responsible actor and enforcing the law are difficult. Cable damage by anchor dragging can be presented as an accident, and a coastal state's enforcement powers diminish with distance from shore. In the Eagle S case, a Finnish district court initially dismissed the charges for lack of jurisdiction before the appeals court reversed the decision in August 2026, illustrating how legal uncertainty reduces the deterrent value of surveillance.

The locations and types of maritime threats change quickly. Piracy has moved between the Gulf of Aden, the Gulf of Guinea, the Singapore Straits, and the Somali Basin within a few years, and state-linked attacks shifted from the Black Sea to the Red Sea and then to the Strait of Hormuz. This volatility makes it difficult for suppliers to plan capacity and for buyers to justify long-term investments tied to a single threat or region.

The protection of cables and pipelines is increasingly treated as a military mission. NATO established a Maritime Centre for the Security of Critical Undersea Infrastructure, the EU added the monitoring of critical submarine infrastructure to the mandates of Operations Aspides and Atalanta in March 2026, and national navies are acquiring seabed surveillance ships, uncrewed underwater vessels, and seabed sensor networks. Procurement is therefore increasingly funded from defense budgets, which are growing faster than civil infrastructure budgets.

Physical and cyber threats to ships and ports increasingly overlap, as GNSS spoofing affects navigation and attacks on terminal operating systems can halt cargo flows. In August 2026, a cyberattack on North Carolina Ports disrupted operations at the Port of Wilmington and the Port of Morehead City. Buyers are integrating security operations and selecting suppliers that can address both domains, favoring integrated solutions and managed services.

Navies and coast guards are working more closely with commercial data providers, shipping companies, and technology firms. Governments increasingly buy commercial satellite imagery and RF data, Task Force X Baltic used systems procured directly from vendors, and the industry Best Management Practices for Maritime Security, published in March 2025, link shipping companies directly to naval reporting centers. This collaboration shortens procurement cycles and creates recurring revenue for data and service providers.

Based on offering, the global Maritime Security Market is segmented into Systems (Surveillance & Tracking Systems, Detection & Screening Systems, Access Control & Perimeter Security, Communication Systems, Command & Control and Maritime Domain Awareness Software, Underwater Detection Systems, and Counter-Drone & Counter-USV Systems) and Services (Vessel Protection Services, Risk Assessment & Intelligence, Consulting & Training, Maintenance & Support, and Managed Cybersecurity Services). In 2026, the Systems segment is expected to account for the larger share of 68.3% of the global Maritime Security Market. The large share of this segment is mainly due to sustained government investment in coastal surveillance, port security, and maritime domain awareness systems and the replacement of coastal radar networks. However, the Services segment is projected to register the higher CAGR of 9.4% during the forecast period, driven by mandatory cybersecurity requirements and the shift toward managed, outcome-based models. Within systems, Command & Control and Maritime Domain Awareness Software is projected to register the highest CAGR of 12.0%.

Based on application, the market is segmented into Coastal Surveillance, Port & Terminal Security, Vessel Security, Critical Undersea Infrastructure Protection, and Maritime Cybersecurity. In 2026, the Coastal Surveillance segment is expected to account for the largest share of 36.5% of the maritime security market, reflecting the obligation of every coastal state to monitor its territorial waters and exclusive economic zone. However, the Critical Undersea Infrastructure Protection segment is projected to register the highest CAGR of 13.4% during the forecast period, driven by repeated damage to cables and pipelines and NATO and EU programs for seabed surveillance.

Based on threat type, the market is segmented into Piracy & Armed Robbery, Terrorism & State-Sponsored Attacks, Smuggling & Trafficking, IUU Fishing, Sabotage & Hybrid Threats, and Cyber Threats. In 2026, the Smuggling & Trafficking segment is expected to account for the largest share of 33.7% of the maritime security market, supported by record cocaine production and large counter-narcotics and customs screening budgets. However, the Sabotage & Hybrid Threats segment is projected to register the highest CAGR of 12.8% during the forecast period, driven by the use of hybrid tactics against cables, pipelines, and offshore energy installations.

Based on technology, the market is segmented into Radar, Electro-Optical & Infrared, AIS & Satellite-Based Tracking, Sonar & Underwater Sensors, AI & Data Analytics, and Uncrewed Systems. In 2026, Radar is expected to account for the largest share of 25.5% of the market covered by the technology segmentation, reflecting its role as the foundation of coastal, port, and vessel surveillance. However, AI & Data Analytics is projected to register the highest CAGR of 14.4% during the forecast period, driven by maritime domain awareness programs and the monitoring of shadow fleets, while Uncrewed Systems are projected to register a CAGR of 12.3%.

Based on end user, the market is segmented into Government (Navies, Coast Guards, and Customs & Border Agencies), Port Authorities & Terminal Operators, Commercial Shipping, Offshore Energy Operators, and Subsea Cable & Telecom Operators. In 2026, the Government segment is expected to account for the largest share of 58.7% of the maritime security market, supported by rising defense and coast guard budgets. However, the Subsea Cable & Telecom Operators segment is projected to register the highest CAGR of 15.7% during the forecast period, driven by new cable systems, rising incidents, and regulatory expectations for infrastructure owners.

The global Maritime Security Market is fragmented, reflecting the diversity of threats, technologies, and buyers and the importance of national procurement and security clearances. Established defense and security contractors supply the radars, electro-optical sensors, command and control systems, and underwater sensors that form the backbone of coastal and port surveillance, while venture-backed companies compete in autonomy, satellite sensing, and maritime analytics. Market participants compete primarily on sensor performance, system integration capability, installed base, security clearances, data coverage, and the ability to support customers over long service lives.

In 2025, Thales S.A., Leonardo S.p.A., Saab AB, Kongsberg Gruppen ASA, and Elbit Systems Ltd. collectively accounted for an estimated share of 14.6% of the market. Contracts and agreements were the most common growth strategy, accounting for 38.5% of the 169 developments tracked between 2023 and 2026, followed by product launches and development and acquisitions. Notable transactions included Thales's agreement to acquire control of Exail Technologies in July 2026, Kpler's acquisition of Spire Global's maritime business in April 2025, and the take-private of Windward by FTV Capital in March 2025.

The report provides a comprehensive competitive assessment of the leading companies operating in the global Maritime Security Market. The key players profiled in the report include Kongsberg Gruppen ASA (Norway), Saab AB (Sweden), Thales S.A. (France), Leonardo S.p.A. (Italy), BAE Systems plc (U.K.), Elbit Systems Ltd. (Israel), Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. (Israel), Terma A/S (Denmark), HENSOLDT AG (Germany), Teledyne FLIR (U.S.), L3Harris Technologies, Inc. (U.S.), Anduril Industries, Inc. (U.S.), Exail Technologies (France), Windward Ltd. (Israel), Kpler (Belgium), HawkEye 360, Inc. (U.S.), ICEYE Oy (Finland), and Ambrey (U.K.).