On April 21st, according to Al Jazeera, Greek maritime risk management company MARISKS warned that unidentified individuals were impersonating Iranian authorities and sending messages to some shipping companies, demanding that they pay transit fees in cryptocurrency in exchange for permission to safely pass through the Strait of Hormuz. The company stated, "These specific messages are scams, and these emails were not sent by Iranian authorities." MARISKS said that according to its understanding, at least one ship attempting to sail out of the strait and being attacked by artillery fire on Saturday was a victim of this scam. Due to Iran's reopening of the Strait of Hormuz in response to the US blockade of its ports, hundreds of ships and approximately 20000 sailors are currently stranded in the Gulf region and unable to pass through.