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The Biden administration is warning the public of cyber threats to U.S. water systems that could affect clean drinking water in communities across the country.
The warning prompts organizations responsible for securing water systems to be on the lookout for attacks ranging from hacks to ransomware.
The advisory, released Thursday by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the FBI, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the National Security Agency, also outlined how to combat the attacks.
“This activity, which includes attempts to compromise system integrity through unauthorized access, [U.S. water and wastewater] facilities that will provide their communities with clean, drinking water and effectively manage their wastewater. “Note: While cyber threats in critical infrastructure sectors are on the rise, this advisory is not intended to show that the WWS Industry is more targeted than others.”
The warning comes as the Biden administration has become more vocal about cyber threats affecting water systems in recent weeks.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Majorkas told USA Today’s editorial board last week that a February cyberattack on a water treatment plant in Oldsmar, Florida was news that “should have hit our entire country.”
According to an earlier recommendation from federal officials, the weak password security and outdated operating system at Oldsmar was exploited by a hacker trying to change drinking water’s sodium hydroxide level, also known as a draining agent. A plant operator in the town near Tampa, Florida, reacted quickly and prevented the hacker from changing the amount of caustic in drinking water from 100 parts per million to 11,100 parts per million.
The new advisory lists several cyber breaches affecting water systems from 2019 to August 2021. Ransomware attacks and hackers hitting water systems are closely linked to threats faced by other critical infrastructure sectors, including insider threats, meaning current or former employees with improper access to various systems. and ransomware gangs, according to the advisory.
The alert does not provide full information on who is responsible for the attacks on water systems, and instead said that “both known and unknown actors” have launched cyberattacks on water systems.
But agencies note that anyone who provides information on foreign governments involved in cyberattacks on water systems could qualify for a grand prize.
“The U.S. Department of State’s Rewards for Justice (RFJ) program offers rewards of up to $10 million for foreign government reports of malicious activity against U.S. critical infrastructure,” the joint recommendation said.
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