The interest in structural health monitoring of flexible risers has grown significantly in recent years. For ducts that are already reaching their design life, monitoring systems can provide early warnings of potential failures and also assist the operator in scheduling downtime. Different techniques are being tested by operators of flexible pipes such as automated visual inspection, vibration monitoring and acoustic emission, in addition to techniques based on electromagnetic methods. Some of these techniques are already being implemented in units of maritime exploration and production in Brazil and other countries. This contribution discusses the continuous monitoring and real-time using optical fiber sensors (FBGs) to detect the breaking of wires in the tensile armor of flexible risers. Two lines are followed, direct monitoring and indirect monitoring. The proposed indirect monitoring technique consists in the nonintrusive instrumentation of the riser’s polymeric outer sheath, which will provide strain signals that change due to the breaking of wires in the armor layer. For that, a transducer capable of detecting variations in the outer diameter, as well as stretching and twisting in the duct was developed. In the direct monitoring technique, all the wires in the external armor layer are individually instrumented with optical sensors that continuously monitor their strains, so that any disruptions of wires and unexpected behavior can be easily detected. Results of full scale laboratory tests showed that the probability of detection of indirect monitoring increases significantly when the system is used in conjunction with other types of indirect monitoring. The laboratory results for the direct monitoring showed high sensitivity and reliability of the system, which has already been installed in three oil rigs operated by Petrobras in the Campos Basin.