What is IACS UR E26 / E27
E26 covers the whole ship, E27 covers shipboard systems; together they require new-build ships to prove cyber resilience before delivery. This page explains what it is, how it relates to you and what to do — and lists every document to submit plus the two submission paths.
Interpretations of IACS UR E26/E27 on this page are for reference only; formal requirements and classification are determined by the class society review.
What is E26 / E27
IACS UR E26 (Cyber Resilience of Ships) targets the whole ship: cybersecurity must be engineered into ship design and construction — covering network segregation, access control, malware protection, backup and recovery.
IACS UR E27 (Cyber Resilience of On-board Systems and Equipment) targets individual systems and equipment: shipboard Computer Based Systems (CBS) must meet a set of verifiable cyber-resilience requirements in hardware, software, network interfaces and security functions.
In short: E26 says 'the whole ship must be secure', E27 says 'each critical system must prove it is secure'. A ship's E26 compliance is built on each system meeting E27.
Keywords: IACS UR E26 · IACS UR E27 · ship cyber resilience · shipboard system cybersecurity · CBS · mandatory from 01 Jul 2024
How it relates to you
E26/E27 is mandatory for new-build ships contracted on or after 01 Jul 2024. Different roles will be asked for E27 evidence along the delivery chain:
Equipment makers / OEMs
Yards require E27 conformity material before you can join a project; without it you are blocked at supplier qualification.
Shipyards / Owners
Whole-ship E26 compliance depends on each system's E27 status; evidence must be collected and tracked per system.
Design institutes / Integrators
Network segregation and equipment selection must embed E26/E27 at the design stage, or rework later is costly.
What to do
Whatever your role, getting E27 done follows roughly the same path:
Confirm scope
Determine whether your system is a CBS in E27 scope and which clauses and security functions apply.
Run a gap assessment
Self-assess against each clause and produce a gap list between your product and the requirements.
Remediate and gather evidence
Close the gaps and prepare submission-ready evidence (test reports, design docs, configuration notes, etc.).
Go through submission
Follow one of the two submission paths below to complete plan approval, witnessing and certificate issuance.
The 8 documents to submit
Below is the document list (evidence package) typically involved in E27 submission. Exact names, counts and acceptable formats follow the latest class society guidance and review for your project.
1. System description and boundary
Defines the CBS scope, composition, network topology and trust boundary.
2. Cyber-resilience design statement
Design rationale for meeting each E27 security function requirement.
3. Asset and interface inventory
Complete list of hardware, software, communication interfaces and external connections.
4. Risk assessment report
Cybersecurity risk identification and mitigation for the system.
5. Security function test report
Test evidence for access control, logging, malware protection and other functions.
6. Configuration and hardening note
Secure-by-default configuration, port/service minimization and a hardening baseline.
7. Backup and recovery plan
Data backup, recovery procedures and availability assurance with verification.
8. Operations and incident response procedure
Procedures for patch management, monitoring and cybersecurity incident response.
Two submission paths
Depending on whether the system/equipment already holds Type Approval, the submission path splits in two. Both end with a System Certificate.
Path 1: With type approval
The equipment already passed E27 type approval; the project phase mainly references the type approval plus installation verification, and is relatively fast.
Plan Approval
Submit the system description and type approval certificate; class reviews the plan documents.
Survey / FAT
On-site witnessing of installation and factory acceptance test, verifying the type approval scope matches the actual installation.
System Certificate
On passing, a system-level cyber-resilience conformity certificate is issued.
Path 2: Without type approval
The equipment holds no type approval; the project must complete a full design review and testing for evidence, with a larger document set.
Plan Approval
Submit the full design documents and evidence package; class reviews item by item against E27.
Survey / FAT
On-site witnessing of full functional and security testing (factory acceptance test), verifying each security function.
System Certificate
Once all clauses are verified, a system-level cyber-resilience conformity certificate is issued.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the difference between E26 and E27?
- E26 targets whole-ship cyber resilience (system-level integration, network segregation, etc.); E27 targets the cyber-resilience requirements of individual shipboard systems and equipment. Whole-ship E26 compliance is built on each system meeting E27.
- When does E27 become mandatory?
- It is mandatory for new-build ships whose construction contract is signed on or after 01 Jul 2024. The exact scope and transitional arrangements follow the latest class circulars.
- Does my equipment have to be type approved?
- Not necessarily. With type approval you can take the faster reference + installation verification path; without it you complete a full design review and testing in the project. Both paths lead to a system certificate.
- What material should I roughly prepare to submit?
- Typically a system description, design statement, asset inventory, risk assessment, test reports, configuration hardening, backup/recovery and operations procedures (see 'The 8 documents to submit' on this page). The final list follows the class society requirements.
- What if the first submission fails?
- Very common — legacy shipboard equipment was never designed for cybersecurity. Running a gap assessment and remediating with evidence in advance significantly reduces the risk of failing the formal witnessing test.