What is Vessel Screening?

What is Vessel Screening?

In this blog post, we’ll be talking about vessel screening; this is a maritime compliance process that is recommended to companies since it identifies ships that may be involved in illegal activities like sanctions evasion, smuggling, or money laundering. The way it works is by collecting information about the vessel like its International Maritime Organization (IMO) number, the ship’s flag state and ownership records against international watchlists and regulatory databases. This way, high-risk vessels are spotted before they can participate in crime.

How to Conduct Vessel Screening?

Once your company is set on reaching compliance, vessel screening is the first step to take. This process involves identity checks and behavioural monitoring as well as sanctions screening to be ultra sure. Identity information is first checked against international sanctions databases that are established by OFAC, the EU, and the UN. Automatic Identification System (AIS) signals coming from the vessel also will show you signs of manipulation, some examples being irregular transmission patterns, ghosting, meaning the turning off of the AIS, and unexplained signal losses, which may be suspicious to your company. Ownership records are also helpful when vessel screenings. Knowing the previous ownership history will allow you to discover suspicious patterns of owner changes, which may be done to stop you from disvoring the origin of their illicit funds. The vessel’s behaviour says a lot when it comes to fraud; unusual routes, transfers to or from other ships in risky areas, and inconsistent port calls that may leave you and your company confused will help you discover any illegal activity.

Why Is Vessel Screening Important?

We’ll talk more about why your company should be conducting vessel screening. The first example is how these screenings prevent sanctions violations. If shipping companies, insurers, and banks deal with these vessels without their knowledge, they will face heavy financial fines, and more. The fines given by the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) can be even more than $10 million per violation. Without compliance, your company may lose essential services like marine insurance and even access to the global banking system.

Our experts at Sanction Scanner advise our readers to care about their company’s reputational integrity. Since this is hard to get back once you lose it, vessel screening is recommended. Sanctioned or high-risk vessels may cause you to do irreparable damage to your reputation; therefore, compliance is especially important.

Key Regulatory Bodies Involved in Maritime Sanctions

When talking about regulatory bodies who work on maritime sanctions, there’s a few we have to mention. The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) in the U.S. has the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list. This list includes sanctioned vessels and prohibited shipping companies. The United Nations Security Council is there to impose sanctions which address problems like weapons of mass destruction (WMD) proliferation and arms trafficking. The EU Sanctions Body deals with with the EU’s vessel regulations; vessels with illicit oil shipments, arms smuggling and more are targeted by this regulatory body.

On April 28, 2025, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned three vessels: Zaas Shipping & Trading Co (Tulip BZ), Bagsak Shipping Inc (Maisan), and Great Success Shipping Co (White Whale), and their owners after they continued to deliver refined petroleum products to Ansarallah (the Houthis), an Iran-backed, sanctioned terrorist group, even after the expiration of General License 25A on April 4, 2025 according to sources of AML Watcher. 

Importance of IMO Number in Vessel Screening

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) number is often mentioned when talking about vessel screening. This number is there because it helps provide a unique identity for each ship. This number is the one constant of the ship, unlike a name or a flag that can be changed to fool the authorities. Regulators use this number when looking for suspicious activity.

Common Risk Indicators for Vessel Screening

There may be some things you need to watch out for when conducting vessel screening. The first red flag you may come across is irregular Automatic Identification System (AIS) activity; signal loss, dark voyages that means the ship’s signal has gone dark, and gaps that are odd in tranmission may be given as examples. Another thing to watch out for is the frequent flag changes. This is when a vessel is changing its jurisdiction to places that have weaker compliance; therefore, it is easier to commit crimes in these places. Name changes are also used to change a vessel’s identity and making it harder to track it down. The final risk indicator that our Sanction Scanner team warns against is about vessels that show port activity in sanctioned or high-risk areas. Some examples are Latakia in Syria, Sevastopol in Crimea, or Hodeidah in Yemen; vessels that are in these areas should be watched closely.

For example, since Panama is a crucial point for vessels and is more exposed to crimes, the Panama Maritime Authority (PMA) has implemented an additional safeguard called Precheck, a screening process that aims to ensure only compliant vessels join the Panama Ship Registry. 

Example Sanctioned Vessel List 2025 

Key Features to Look for in Vessel Screening Software

After reading the benefits of vessel screening, you may want to implement a vessel screening software and looking for the best suited one for your company. The first feature to look for is API integration; it helps you integrate this new software to your already existing systems with ease. The software should also ensure sanctions list coverage, better if it’s covering international lists as well. OFAC, the UN, the EU, and many more lists should be included to ensure full coverage. Afterwards, another feature to look for is port activity tracking. This feature helps spot suspicious places or routes that cross sanctioned areas. Ownership analytics also help you discover who the real owner is and their links with other sanctioned parties. Fuzzy matching is also another feature that helps; this feature scans the name of your vessel to make sure it isn’t using variations to escape getting caught. Some examples for companies with great solutions are Sanction Scanner, Windward, Pole Star Maritime, and Refinitiv World-Check Maritime. These platforms are especially recommended since they offer automated compliance workflows and advanced risk detection for your company.

Another example is Vissim, a Norwegian technology company, which has been contracted to deliver a Centralized Vessel Monitoring and Alerting System (CVMAS) to Qatar, providing comprehensive monitoring and alerting capabilities, and covering the country's coastline and more than 300 offshore assets. 

Who Needs Vessel Screening?

Let’s talk more about the industries that will benefit the most from implementing vessel screening. The first example is banks and trade finance providers; these firms will use screening to prevent funding shipments that involve sanctioned or high-risk vessels. Marine insurers are another example since they use vessel screening to detect suspicious activity and before deciding to underwrite a voyage. Shipping companies are also looking to avoid regulatory penalties and reputational damage; naturally, vessel screening makes sense for them. Port authorities are using vessel screening since these checks inform them against sanctioned vessels; they can then use this information to stop the vessel from docking and operating in their region. Oil and gas traders are also benefitting from screenings which help them avoid embargoed routes.

Consequences of Inadequate Vessel Screening

So, what happens if your vessel screening practices aren’t enough? The first consequence you may face is fines; regulatory bodies like OFAC or the EU may impose fines of more than $20 million if your sanctions violation is discovered. Other than that, your trade licenses may be affected; your company may lose its licenses which allows it to operate in an international level. But, it’s not done yet: one more and arguably the most important result is the reputational harm your company will suffer. Your company may even get blacklisted by ports, losing customers and collaborations.

How Can Sanction Scanner Simplify Vessel Screening?

Our experienced team at Sanction Scanner are here for your company’s vessel screening needs. Sanction Scanner can track thousands of vessels at all times which mean you miss no suspicious activity. Our team also makes sure to include full sanctions list coverage, including OFAC, the UN, and the EU lists which provide the broadest coverage while also being international. Another benefit of using Sanction Scanner is the Ultimate Beneficial Ownership (UBO) analytics; these can provide more knowledge about the real owner under complex structures, usually used to commit financial crimes. The API integration Sanction Scanner offers is there to allow your company implement Sanction Scanner solutions right there with your already existing systems.