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Tue, 10 Mar 2026

Tue, 10 Mar 2026 GPS jamming: The invisible battle in the Middle East

GPS jamming has made navigation hazardous in the Gulf, spurring efforts to develop alternatives.

* Hundreds of ships in the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding areas have their GPS coordinates disrupted, likely due to jamming.
* This is a major concern as it can cause significant disruption to maritime navigation and safety.
* The interference is thought to be caused by Iran, which has threatened to attack any ship attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
* The jamming devices are likely domestically produced or made with equipment sourced from Russia or China.
* The US Department of War has not commented on the status of specific capabilities in the region.
* Tech companies have developed tools to detect and mitigate GPS jamming, including devices that can automatically detect jamming and switch to unaffected frequencies.
* Alternative navigation systems are being developed, such as ones that use gyroscopes and accelerometers or star-mapping to determine a vehicle's position.
* The growing prevalence of jamming is expected to lead to the introduction of more secure alternatives to GPS.