Lantern
Shining light on the maritime world.
A maritime OSINT toolkit for verifying flag state ship registries, P&I insurance, and classification certificates — and for identifying the fraudulent websites that impersonate legitimate maritime authorities.
Browse Suspect SitesFlag State Registries
Verify vessel registration with official flag state authorities. Per-country guides with direct links to verification portals and known fraudulent impersonators.
P&I Clubs
Protection and Indemnity insurance clubs. How to verify a vessel holds valid cover with a recognised club, and how to identify fake P&I certificates.
Classification Societies
Technical standards bodies that inspect and certify vessels. How to verify class certificates through official portals and spot fraudulent impersonators.
Suspect Site Directory
A database of 21+ suspicious and confirmed-fake maritime websites — fake registries, fraudulent class societies, and bogus insurers.
The Problem
The maritime world runs on paper — certificates of registry, class certificates, P&I insurance cards. Vessel operators, port authorities, and cargo interests rely on these documents to establish that a ship is seaworthy, properly flagged, and insured.
Fraudsters have learned to exploit this. A sophisticated ecosystem of fake maritime websites now exists — impersonating government ship registries, classification societies, and P&I clubs — issuing fraudulent certificates that pass casual inspection but dissolve under scrutiny.
Lantern is a research resource for verifying these claims and identifying the infrastructure behind the fraud.