The next great frontier of human exploration may soon be haunted by an old, familiar scourge: pirates.
Not the swashbuckling kind with parrots and peglegs. These are hackers, saboteurs, rogue states, and criminal syndicates — modern-day buccaneers eyeing satellites, space stations, and orbital infrastructure to wreak havoc. And according to a group of forward-thinking experts, the first shots of this new conflict may already have been fired.
Marc Feldman and Hugh Taylor are sounding the alarm. At the Center for the Study of Space Crime, Policy, and Governance, they are turning heads with an unlikely but pressing proposition: piracy in space has become a real-world threat. The next billion-dollar heist might happen in space.
“Now is the time to start thinking and talking about mitigating the threat of piracy in space,” said Feldman, the center’s executive director. “As we like to say, and please forgive me, Leon Trotsky, but you may not be interested in space piracy, but space pirates are interested in you …”
Pirates in Earth’s Orbit
In their new book, Space Piracy: Preparing for a Criminal Crisis in Orbit (Wiley, 2025), Feldman and Taylor lay out a case for urgent global action. They describe their work as “speculative nonfiction,” but their warning is clear: this phenomenon is bound to occur.
And if you think we still have time to prepare, Taylor has news for you.
“We are arguing that it’s already started, in very early stages, with attempts to hack satellites,” he said. “However, we think that the increasingly commercial nature of space will result in attacks, physical and digital, on space assets, probably starting with disruptions of Earth-based space assets like launch facilities or ground stations.”
The story of the book opens, fittingly, with a movie. In 1929, a young German boy named Wernher von Braun watched Frau im Mond, a silent film that imagined a lunar gold rush — and a band of crooks who hijack the mission. The film’s fantastical vision helped inspire von Braun to pioneer rocketry, eventually helping NASA land men on the moon. But it also foreshadowed another possible outcome: where valuable space missions become the target of pirates, smugglers, and saboteurs.
And that possibility is fast approaching. With billionaires launching satellites and space agencies planning asteroid mining and lunar bases, vast wealth is moving off-Earth. Already, more than 8,000 satellites orbit the planet. The global space economy, estimated to top $500 billion today, could hit several trillion in the coming decades.
“Space is rapidly transforming into a commercial resource that is available for the use of all humankind,” the authors write. “And, for better or worse, the broadening exploitation of space is exposing the ignoble side of humanity.”
“Space piracy is inevitable,” they added. “As the costs and technical barriers to accessing space continue to come down, new wealth will be generated in space. At least some of that wealth will be able to be stolen or held hostage.”
What Could Space Piracy Look Like?
Forget the swashbuckling pirates of the Caribbean. Space piracy won’t involve muskets and cutlasses. In fact, it’s highly unlikely any actual people will be involved.
“In all probability, space piracy will be significantly more complex than piracy at sea,” the authors explain. “Space piracy requires the use of costly, sophisticated space equipment.”
Hijackings might involve remote-controlled robots capturing rival satellites. Hackers could seize control of orbital infrastructure and demand ransom. Nations might sponsor criminal cartels to disrupt enemy assets without triggering open war. In some cases, the piracy may happen not in space at all — but on Earth, where satellite uplinks and launchpads can be infiltrated or sabotaged.
“We believe the best candidates for space piracy are the existing criminal cartels,” they write. “They have the resources and strategic resolve to enter this expensive but lucrative field of crime.”
Other pirate groups may blur the line between state and private enterprise. Like the British East India Company once did on the oceans, future corporations may act as quasi-governments in space — policing, profiting, and perhaps even pirating.
The authors warn that space piracy may span four realms: outer space, cyberspace, terrestrial space, and even virtual or AI-generated environments. That broad scope, they argue, makes it especially difficult to monitor or stop.
Why Should We Worry About Space Piracy Now?
Isn’t this all a bit premature?
Feldman and Taylor mention that history has shown the cost of waiting too long. In cybersecurity, early missteps in the 1960s created a world vulnerable to constant attack today. At sea, centuries-old maritime law still hampers effective action against pirates. If we don’t act now, the same could happen in orbit.
“Bad policies tend to harden and become difficult to change,” they note. “If we want to avoid such an outcome in space, we need to start figuring out better policies today.”
They draw a vivid comparison to the Houthis in Yemen, whose disruptions of maritime traffic in the Red Sea show how nonstate actors can wreak global havoc with asymmetric tools. Similar strategies could emerge in space, especially as criminal organizations, rogue states, and even corrupt corporations seek leverage over this new economic domain.
“The technology used by space pirates will probably be more lethal than that used by today’s sea pirates,” they warn.
Who Guards Space?
If space piracy is indeed brewing, who will stop it?
That’s a question with no clear answer. The U.S. Space Force, while the most obvious candidate, is still largely oriented toward defending against threats from nation-states like China or Russia.
“Our thought is that there needs to be a lead agency pulling together different stakeholders,” Taylor told Space.com. “This could be the U.S. Space Force, though they don’t appear to be structured for it or tasked with this right now.”
One surprising contender, Taylor suggested, is the U.S. Navy. With centuries of experience fighting pirates, it might seem like a natural fit. But there’s a catch.
“They lack the legal charter to get involved, if I understand federal statutes,” he said.
Instead, the authors point to the United Nations as a potential starting point.
“People don’t like the United Nations, but it arguably is the only venue where everyone can come together and talk. It could be the starting point,” Taylor added.
At the moment, the U.N.’s Office for Outer Space Affairs provides a loose framework for international cooperation in space, but it has little enforcement power. Feldman and Taylor argue that’s not enough to deter motivated criminals.
Just as maritime pirates once preyed on cargo-laden ships, space pirates may one day target valuable assets navigating the planet’s orbit. The question is not whether they’ll come — but whether we’ll be ready when they do.
