A conceptual framework for maritime crew certification: Exploring the potential of Seafarer Credential Ledger

Concerns have been raised by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) regarding fraudulent STCW certificates, detected during Port State Control inspections and in applications for recognition of certificates. In response to these concerns, digital signatures and blockchain have emerged as compelling solutions to mitigate fraud in maritime crew certification. However, academic studies on digital crew certification remain primarily limited to contextual and conceptual analyses. This study aims to address this gap by conducting a comparative analysis of digital signatures and blockchain technologies. This study involves interviews with experts with relevant experience in digital signatures and blockchain technologies to evaluate technological dimensions and analyse challenges in digitalizing maritime crew certification. By analysing the potential performance of digital signature and blockchain-based solutions, this study proposes a conceptual framework for secure maritime crew certification to improve the reliability of fraud detection, thereby preventing the use of fraudulent seafarer certificates. This study also emphasizes several challenges related to metadata standardization, technology management mindset, and human capacity, thereby demonstrating a more comprehensive approach in digitalizing maritime crew certification.