Readiness note. This is a private training programme. It builds knowledge and readiness. It does not grant any official certificate, licence, or government recognition, and it does not create any affiliation with a regulator or an agency. On passing, learners receive a Record of Completion.
What this course is not. This is a knowledge course. It is not ISPS Code training, not a port facility security officer course and not STCW training. Only training approved by your country's maritime authority counts for port duty.
This unit builds on lesson 1 (Introduction to Physical Security: Foundations).
Mission briefing
It is 06:00 at the main gate of Sagar Point port. Trucks wait in a long queue. A ship came in during the night, and its crew want to go to town. A crane lifts steel boxes. Behind you is the sea. The work looks like any gate. It is not.
Focus: a port is a border, a workplace and a target at the same time. You work under the port's security plan. You help by checking, watching and reporting.
Learning objectives
By the end of this unit, you will be able to:
- Say why ports and ships need their own security rules.
- Tell two lessons from past attacks.
- Name the world rules for port security in simple words.
- Say who does what in a port, and where a guard fits.
- Say what this course is, and what it is not.
1. Why a port is different
A port is a place where ships load and unload. Most of what a country buys and sells moves by sea. So a port is different from a mall or a factory in four ways.
- It is a border. Goods and people enter and leave the country here. Customs and immigration officers work here.
- It holds great value. One steel cargo box, called a container, can hold very costly goods.
- It can be dangerous. Fuel, gas and chemicals pass through. Huge machines move all day and all night.
- It is open to the water. A fence cannot close the sea side.
People with bad aims know all this. The risks a port plans for include:
- Theft of cargo, fuel and equipment.
- Smuggling of drugs, weapons and other banned goods.
- People who hide on a ship to travel in secret. They are called stowaways.
- Damage done on purpose to ships, cranes or cargo.
- An attack on a ship, on passengers or on the port.
2. Two lessons from the past
Port security rules were written after real events. Here are two. Each one teaches a lesson.
A cruise ship, 1985. Armed men took control of an Italian cruise ship named the Achille Lauro. They killed a passenger before the siege ended. After this, the world body for shipping wrote guidance on how to protect passengers and crews on ships.
The lesson: who and what goes onto a ship matters. A check at the gate and at the ship's side protects real people.
The attacks of September 2001. Terrorists attacked the United States on 11 September 2001. After that, countries saw the need to protect ships and ports from terrorism. They agreed one common set of security rules for ships and ports. The rules were adopted in December 2002. They came into force on 1 July 2004.
The lesson: ports across the world now work to the same basic rules. A ship expects the same care at each port.
3. The world rules in simple words
The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is the United Nations body for shipping. Two names from it come up often.
- SOLAS is the main world agreement on the safety of ships. Its chapter on security is numbered XI-2.
- The ISPS Code is the security code that sits under that chapter. Part A must be followed. Part B gives guidance.
The code covers ships on voyages between countries: passenger ships, and cargo ships of 500 gross tonnage and more. Gross tonnage is a measure of a ship's size. The code also covers each port facility that serves these ships. A port facility is the part of a port where ship and shore meet.
The code does not cover warships. For ports that serve mostly local ships, each government decides how far the rules apply. Your post orders tell you which rules your site follows.
4. Who does what
Many people and organisations work in one port.
| Who | What they do |
|---|---|
| The government | Makes the law. Sets the security level. Approves the security plan. |
| Port or terminal operator | Runs the port facility and pays for its security. |
| Port facility security officer (PFSO) | The person appointed to be in charge of the port facility security plan. Works with the ships. |
| The ship | The master (captain) commands the ship. A ship security officer looks after its security. |
| Customs and immigration | Control goods and people that cross the border. |
| Police, coast guard, navy | Deal with crime and with threats on land and water. |
| You, the guard | Work your post under the plan. Check, watch, record and report. |
Every port facility under the code has a port facility security plan. The plan is kept secret. You will be told only your own part, through your post orders and your supervisor.
Your line of report is: you, then your supervisor or the control room, then the PFSO. One exception: if life is in danger and you cannot reach the control room at once, call the public emergency number yourself. Then tell the control room as soon as you can.
5. The seven daily jobs of port security
At normal times the code asks every port facility to do seven things. In plain words:
- Carry out all security duties.
- Control who and what comes in.
- Watch the whole facility, with the places where ships wait and tie up.
- Watch the restricted areas, so only allowed people enter.
- Supervise the handling of cargo.
- Supervise the handling of ship's stores. Stores are the food, parts and supplies a ship takes on.
- Keep security communications ready to use.
Guards help with many of these. The code adds one more thing. Security should cause as little delay as possible to passengers, ships, crew, visitors and goods. A good port guard is firm and quick, not slow and rude.
6. What this course is, and what it is not
This course gives you knowledge about port work.
It is not the official training for port security staff. Each country's maritime authority decides what that training is and who may give it. The PFSO must make sure security staff are trained. Your employer will arrange it.
It is also not:
- A PFSO course. That is a separate course for the officer in charge.
- STCW training. STCW is the world standard for training seafarers. It is for people who work on ships.
- A port pass. Only the port can give you a pass.
Some port skills must be learnt in person, on the site. This course says so each time.
7. Safety and security together
Port work has a high rate of accidents. Trucks, cranes, moving loads and deep water are all near you. On every post, ask two questions. Is it secure against crime? Is it safe from accidents? Unit W6 (Cargo Yards, Sheds and Dangerous Goods Awareness) and unit W8 (Working Safely Near Water) cover safety in the yard and near water.
What you do / What you never do
| You do | You never do |
|---|---|
| Follow your post orders and the plan | Never make up your own rules for the gate |
| Report through your supervisor or control room | Never talk about the security plan with outsiders |
| Treat crew, drivers and visitors with respect | Never act as a customs, immigration or police officer |
| Keep safe near machines and water | Never say this course is official port security training |
Worked example
The people, ships and places in this example are invented.
Ravi is new at Sagar Point. A friendly man at the tea stall outside says, "You work at the port? I hear there is a new security plan. What does it say about the night shift?"
Ravi smiles and says, "I cannot talk about work. Sorry." At the start of his shift he tells his supervisor, Meena. He gives the time, the place and what the man looked like. Meena logs it and tells the PFSO.
Ravi gave nothing away, stayed polite, and reported it to his supervisor.
Activity — know your port
Answer these for your own site. Ask your supervisor if you are not sure.
- Who is the PFSO, or the person in charge of security?
- Where are the customs and police posts in your port?
- What official training has your employer arranged for you?
Key points
- A port is a border, a store of value, a dangerous workplace and an open waterside.
- The rules came from real attacks.
- SOLAS chapter XI-2 and the ISPS Code are the world rules. Governments apply them.
- The PFSO is in charge of the port facility security plan. You work under it.
- Report through your supervisor or control room.
- This course is knowledge. It is not official port security training.
Where to go next
- Lesson 1 (Introduction to Physical Security: Foundations): deter, detect, delay and respond.
- Unit 2A (Your Post: Orders, Handover and the Logbook): post orders and the line of report.
- Unit W2 (The Port Map: Gates, Yards, Berths and Restricted Areas) and unit W3 (Security Levels 1, 2 and 3): the map of a port and its security levels.
- Unit W6 (Cargo Yards, Sheds and Dangerous Goods Awareness) and unit W8 (Working Safely Near Water): safety in the yard and near water.
Conclusion
You have completed this unit. You can now say why ports need special security, who does what, and where you fit.
The next unit is W2 (The Port Map: Gates, Yards, Berths and Restricted Areas).
Complete the Learning Check for this unit before you move on.