Scammers Target Shipowners With Fake Crypto Fees for Hormuz Passage

Shipowners are receiving fraudulent messages demanding cryptocurrency payments in exchange for "safe passage" through the Strait of Hormuz, and at least one vessel may have already been conned, according to a warning issued by Greek maritime risk services company Marisks. The scammers are posing as Iranian authorities and asking for bitcoin or USDT, with Marisks stating it believes at least one ship fell victim to the scheme and was subsequently fired upon while attempting to transit the strait over the weekend. Apparently, "not your keys, not your coins" extends to "not your ship, no safe passage" when scammers get involved.

Marisks alerted the shipping industry on Monday, saying several companies had received the deceptive messages. The firm stressed that the communications did not originate from legitimate Iranian sources. "These specific messages are a scam," the company said, adding that it had documented the fraudulent requests. Because when someone asks for payment in cryptocurrency without a verifiable on-chain invoice, that's generally a red flag—even in international waters.

Shipping traffic through the strategic chokepoint has been largely blocked since February 28, when the U.S. and Israel initiated military operations against Iran. According to Reuters, roughly 20,000 oil tankers and other freighters remain stranded in the Gulf. A week after President Donald Trump ordered a naval blockade of the strait, U.S. forces seized one Iranian vessel attempting to evade the operation. Meanwhile, on April 9, Tehran— which controls the waterway— proposed official cryptocurrency tolls for vessels seeking safe transit. Hamid Hosseini, spokesperson for Iran's Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Products Exporters' Union, indicated the fees would likely be charged in bitcoin. Apparently, Iran decided that if they were going to shake down ships anyway, they might as well do it with regulators' favorite asset class.

The fraudulent message cited by Marisks read: "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." Iran has not commented on the scam reports, and Marisks did not immediately respond to requests for further details. One imagines the legitimate Iranian crypto toll initiative is not thrilled about copycat scammers muddying their brand— though "blockchain traceability" hasn't exactly solved the problem of who sent the fake messages in the first place.