Security News > 2021 > February > Remote Hacker Caught Poisoning Florida City Water Supply
U.S. law enforcement agencies are investigating a remote compromise of a Florida city's water plant, warning that the hackers tried to poison the water supply serving approximately 15,000 residents.
The hack was spotted on February 5th - and neutralized - in real time by staff at the plant that supplies water to Oldsmar, a small city close to Tampa, Florida.
Also known as lye, controls the acidity in potable water but elevated levels maliciously added to water supply can cause physical harm to the public.
Details of the compromise are scarce but local officials made it clear the city's water supply was never affected.
In early 2020, the Israeli government issued an alert to organizations in the water sector following a series of cyberattacks aimed at water facilities, and advised water and energy firms to immediately change the passwords of internet-accessible control systems, reduce internet exposure, and ensure that all control system software is up to date.
Just weeks later, a group of Iranian hackers posted a video showing how they managed to access an industrial control system at a water facility in Israel.