The fundamentals of remote monitoring and security

It is a given that security issues arise when setting up remote connectivity. So, we have put together this article covering the fundamentals of remote monitoring and outlining the issues with security when using an open network.

Remote monitoring

Remote monitoring is becoming much more common in the marine industry, from leisure through to commercial. With various advances in marine electronics devices such as NMEA 2000 Wireless gateways, remote monitoring has been made much easier.

The widespread problem faced before wireless gateways was that of wanting to monitor the vessel’s data, but locations were limited to do this. Previously, it was necessary to find the nearest MFD and view the data there with the display that was hardwired into an NMEA 2000 network. Nowadays, with the addition of wireless gateways and advancements in the mobile phone/tablet industry, this can be done from almost anywhere.

Provided that the device has a stable connection available to the wireless gateway, the data can be received. A typical use case is a captain wanting to view the ship’s data on an onboard PC from their own quarters. This is now simple and easy to do, by connecting the PC to the Wi-Fi Gateway, it will receive all output data from the gateway in the defined format.

Local wireless is great, but what if we wanted to push it one step further and go for complete remote access from somewhere off the vessel? That is now achievable. Wireless gateways such as our own W2K-1 can join a pre-existing onboard network as a Client. This means that the W2K-1 will be assigned an IP address by the router, acting as another device just like a laptop or mobile phone that is connected.

The IP address can then be accessed remotely provided that the router/network has LTE, 4G or other forms of internet connectivity, enabling external connections. Of course, there are some complexities to add to this such as connecting two routers using a Proxy or VPN, but these are not going to be covered here.

There are several pre-existing complete monitoring solutions available for a vessel, but these also usually carry a high price tag. The applications and methods you choose to use are mostly determined by what you want to monitor.

Security and passwords

Security is always going to be a major factor when considering how to set up remote connectivity, as in principle you are taking a previously offline system and bringing it online. By default, most wireless interfaces will now use WPA2 security as a minimum, with some utilizing WPA3 which is a much-improved revision. The security and passwords chosen are down to the user, but for a general piece of guidance, we suggest open network settings (non-password protected) are not used when working outside of a local area network (LAN).

Using a VPN or Proxy is highly recommended as it encrypts any data you send or receive, creating a secure ‘tunnel’ for data to be transferred.

Passwords should remain unique, and only be issued to those responsible for the vessel’s operation and maintenance. Avoid using easy-to-guess passwords such as names, places, and sequences of numbers.

What can we do with the data?

So now you’ve set your W2K-1 or WGX-1 up and connected it to an existing network or application, what can you actually do with the data you have access to?

There is a wide variety of applications on the market. Some are simple data displays acting as a secondary MFD, while others are for a full suite of diagnostics and monitoring. There are charting applications that can be used to view vessel location, targets, waypoints, etc., as a secondary MFD when you’re not at the helm.

However, we can go much further than the basic data viewing, especially when we start to incorporate other systems. There are systems available such as Vanemar now, which can provide connectivity and a view of hundreds of data parameters, for both vessel operation and security. Features like Geofencing and anchored drifting mean you can be alerted to the vessel moving when you’re not on board. For extra layers of security, they offer motion sensors and door sensors, alerting you to any movement on board if you aren’t present.

Combine this with battery information, engine temperatures and various humidity sensors on board, smoke detectors and bilge high water alarms, and you gain access to an extremely comprehensive suite of tools for remote monitoring and data analysis of your boat when you’re not on-board, giving you peace of mind that your boat is safe at all times.

The W2K-1 and WGX-1 both offer their own diagnostics and monitoring tools too (completely free, included in the latest firmware update). These allow you to view the data in real time, and offer access to battery voltages and device lists via Actisense-i. Of course, remote connection and access also means you can pull the logs off of the SD card from anywhere in the world and analyse the data from your vessel at any time.

In a future update, we will be adding some very neat and exciting graphics to the products, which will further improve the user experience and make live viewing and diagnostics much easier. Oh… and this update will also be free, just like every feature that is added in with our firmware updates.

In summary…

Remote monitoring is an emerging technology in the marine industry that boasts operational benefits and is becoming significantly easier to utilise due to advancements in technology. However, it can be challenging to maintain a secure network as it relies on a reliable connection, which can be difficult on a moving vessel. As we have highlighted, there are several things you can do to keep your connections secure, from WPA2 security on wireless interfaces to maintaining secure pathways by using a VPN or Proxy.

Article updated 05/03/2025.