In late November, an Iranian-backed hacking group attacked Israeli-made digital controls commonly used in the water and wastewater industries in the US, affecting multiple organizations across several states.
A top White House national security official said recent cyber attacks by Iranian hackers on U.S. water authorities — as well as a separate spate of ransomware attacks on the health care industry — should be seen as a call to action by utilities and industry to tighten cybersecurity.
Three members of Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation have asked the Department of Justice to investigate how foreign hackers breached a water authority near Pittsburgh, which prompted warnings to other water treatment facilities.
Hackers are targeting industrial control systems widely used by water and sewage-treatment utilities, potentially threatening water supplies, the top U.S. cyberdefense agency said after a Pennsylvania water authority was hacked.
This week the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit granted a request from the American Water Works Association (AWWA) and the National Rural Water Association (NRWA) to stop the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Cybersecurity Rule from going into effect until a current case challenging the rule has been decided.
According to government officials, security experts and persistent media reports, all signs indicate that cybersecurity is an issue that is here to stay and puts U.S. infrastructure squarely in the crosshairs of hackers and foreign governments. Recently the issue has been heightened by the war in Ukraine and has increased concerns about a potential Russian retaliation to U.S. sanctions that may come in the form of a cyberattack.
But whether it’s Russia, China, another foreign government or an independent hacker, concerns about how cyberattacks could impact infrastructure in the United States have been elevated – and a look at how they could affect the water industry is fascinating.
When it comes to cybersecurity, a recent report by the Legislative Analyst’s Office found the agriculture and water sectors have a long way to go.
Now, a Central Valley lawmaker is proposing legislation to help beef up cybersecurity for those sectors.
With a geopolitical crisis playing out thousands of miles away, the drinking water sector in the U.S. has doubled its resolve against potential attacks against their digital systems.
The White House launched a new cybersecurity initiative for the U.S. water supply Thursday after a handful of worrisome hacks against the sector last year.
The new initiative is designed to create a system that shares information about cyberthreats with the water sector and industry-wide basic security practices, though water facilities will not be forced to adopt any new practices.
Bryson Bort, a cybersecurity consultant for industrial systems, said it was an important first step toward more secure water infrastructure.
Water utilities are just the latest industry to experience high-profile cyber incidents.
Earlier this year, a hacker breached a California water treatment plant and removed programs used to clean water. In another incident that made national headlines, a hacker gained remote access to a Florida treatment plant and increased the amount of lye in the treatment process – a change that a plant employee fortunately noticed and quickly corrected.
Going back to a time when water utilities were less connected is not an option. COVID-19 demanded connected operations so employees could work remotely.
