This paper presents the results of direct 3−D fault displacement monitoring along the northern shore of Hornsund Fjord, SW Spitsbergen, Svalbard. The fault displacements have been recorded using three permanently installed optical−mechanical crack gauges since 2009. The monitoring data from all three sites provided evidence for a remarkable slip event that lasted from September 2011 to May 2012. The cause is discussed in some detail with consideration given to both exogenic (temperature changes, surface processes) and endogenic processes (isostatic rebound and regional seismicity). It is proposed that transient fault slips recorded had a tectonic origin and were caused by approximately W−E oriented compression corresponding to regional compression in the Svalbard area.