The IMO has recently put under the microscope over 300 ships involved in fraudulent vessel registrations operating without the knowledge of governments they claim to represent, according to data provided by the Standard P&I Club.
In the wake of recent geopolitical tensions and several sanctions impositions on countries such as Iran and North Korea, some ships have used tactics to avoid these sanctions such as turning off their AIS (automatic identification system) or falsely reporting their flag...
https://safety4sea.com/over-300-ships-involved-in-fraudulent-registries/