Vanguard Tech Launches Digital CSO Product to Address Insecurity at Sea

 

[By Vanguard Tech]

As Red Sea insecurity reshapes global shipping routes, Vanguard Tech has launched a first-of-its-kind 'Digital CSO' to assist CSOs in managing risk, resilience, and response at sea.

Triggered by ongoing insecurity in the Southern Red Sea and Gulf of Aden and a growing need to provide seafarers with more than just traditional routing guidance, Vanguard Tech has unveiled its new 'Digital CSO' product, a first-of-its-kind digital Company Security Officer (CSO) solution designed to assist CSOs and give shipping companies live visibility, faster decision-making, and stronger protection in the world's most volatile waters. The product, developed over the last 18 months, encompasses complete end-to-end maritime risk management; from the initial planning stages, all the way through to safe arrival.

With the Vanguard Tech Digital Platform anchoring the service, Digital CSO is designed to Assess, Alert, Advise, Act, and Assure. Digital CSO redefines vessel risk through a fully integrated AI-driven platform. The product is available to clients on a tiered basis – ensuring scalable support for fleets of all sizes – and encompasses elements ranging from maritime intelligence, digital tracking, SSAS alerting, closed-loop tracking, annual ISPS-compliant emergency drills, and access to the new Vanguard AI insurance platform. Although the product is applicable globally, some elements have been individually tailored to particular high-risk areas. For example, amidst ongoing Houthi targeting of vessels, the affiliation assessments can give assurances to all stakeholders – from owners to insurers – that vessels can transit high-risk areas safely.

Benjamin Simonson, Vanguards Head of Operations said, "For years, the CSO's duties were carried out in a traditional way. With Vanguard's Digital CSO, we're not replacing that role but empowering it with advanced technology. It's now about live insights, data-driven accountability, and continuous monitoring. By bringing risk intelligence, tracking, and communication together in one platform, shipping companies can make faster, more accurate decisions. The result is fewer delays, stronger compliance, and greater protection where it matters most. For the first time, Vanguard is delivering end-to-end digital risk management for shipping - fully automated, seamless, and designed to give operators, managers, and owners true peace of mind."

The launch comes at a time of heightened global maritime disruption, with shipping seeking smarter, technology-driven solutions to navigate risks such as piracy, conflict spillover, and sanctions exposure. With security conditions in key maritime chokepoints deteriorating, Vanguard positions Digital CSO as a transformational solution for shipping companies — providing not just compliance, but proactive resilience, operational assurance, and safer seas.