AIS Ghost Ships and Blind Spots: Why China's AIS Data Withholding Threatens Global Trade

by Moira Jones US Bureau Chief | World Media UK

The maritime arteries of the global economy rely on the Automatic Identification System (AIS,) digital beacons emitted by ships to broadcast their global positions, share identity, cargo, speed, and course. This data ensures navigation safety. It provides critical data to the global supply, understanding where a ship is, port useage, contents, traffic, and monitoring potential supply chain disruptions. one of the world's largest powers, China, turned off the systems and exited the global data world. Under China's Personal Information Protection Law, signed in November 2021, China shut off AIS signal transmissions from Chinese waters citing data privacy and national security reasons. Amid tariff and trade discussions and a new administration the U.S. has an opportunity to bring this issue into trade, tariff, and diplomatic discussions with Beijing.

AIS is to shipping what air traffic control is to aviation.

China's data blackout is not a hiccup but imoosed control, creating global supply chain blindeess,

increasing fraud and allowing sanctions evasion, and a denial of strategic information asymetry.

Why AIS Matters

AIS is to shipping what air traffic control is to aviation. It’s not just about avoiding collisions—it’s about:

• Tracking global cargo flows

• Monitoring port congestion and activity

• Detecting sanctions violations and maritime fraud

• Forecasting economic trends in real time

AIS underpins everything from just-in-time manufacturing to commodity pricing and customs enforcement. Without it, companies, insurers, governments, and humanitarian actors are forced to guess what’s happening across 7,000 miles of open ocean and coastal infrastructure.

⸻

What China’s Data Blackout Means

The AIS blackout is not just a technical hiccup—it’s a systemic opacity imposed at scale by the Chinese state:

1. Global Supply Chain Blindness: Logistics firms and shipping companies have lost real-time visibility on vessel movements in Chinese ports—some of the world’s busiest—affecting planning, insurance, and pricing.

2. Increased Risk of Fraud and Sanctions Evasion: Without AIS data, bad actors can disguise ship-to-ship transfers, illegal transshipments, or rerouting of sanctioned goods.

3. Strategic Information Asymmetry: While the world loses visibility into China’s maritime traffic, Beijing retains internal awareness—a power imbalance that gives it control over global freight flows and trade responses.

4. LOGINK’s Monopoly: China’s state-backed logistics platform, LOGINK, consolidates supply chain intelligence under government oversight—raising the possibility of data manipulation, competitive espionage, or even coercive use of logistics chokepoints.

⸻

U.S. Interests at Stake

This is not just a maritime or commercial issue—it is a strategic challenge that affects:

• Economic forecasting: When AIS goes dark, so does visibility into import/export activity—handicapping analysts and central banks.

• National security: AIS blind spots make it harder to monitor PLA Navy movements, illicit trafficking, or dual-use cargo flows.

• Commercial competitiveness: U.S. and allied firms are at a disadvantage when China’s state apparatus has full visibility on trade flows while everyone else is kept in the dark.

• Rule-based order: The deliberate withholding of AIS undermines the norms of transparency in global shipping established under the International Maritime Organization.

⸻

Policy Recommendations

The U.S. government must elevate maritime data transparency into its broader strategy for economic and geopolitical competition with China. This means:

1. Integrate AIS transparency into trade talks and tariff negotiations. Just as currency manipulation and IP theft are addressed in bilateral agreements, so too should maritime data withholding be treated as a form of trade distortion.

2. Push for international norms around AIS data sharing. The U.S. should work with the IMO, Quad, G7, and EU to make AIS transparency a baseline expectation of responsible maritime behavior.

3. Create reciprocal standards. If China withholds AIS, the U.S. and its allies should explore port access policies, insurance limitations, or data reciprocity mechanisms that raise the cost of opaqueness.

4. Invest in alternative data and intelligence tools. This includes satellite-based synthetic aperture radar (SAR), private AIS fusion platforms, and human intelligence from ports of interest.

⸻

Conclusion: Data as a New Domain of Trade Power

As global trade enters a new era of strategic competition, control over visibility is becoming as important as control over goods. China’s manipulation of AIS data should be understood not just as a technical disruption, but as a tool of strategic influence. If the U.S. wants to defend a fair, rules-based global economy, it must put maritime transparency on the negotiation table—alongside tariffs, market access, and digital sovereignty.

Otherwise, the U.S. risks navigating blind through waters where others sail with full visibility—and full advantage.