Security News > 2021 > February > Industry Reactions to U.S. Water Plant Hack: Feedback Friday
The attack, which targeted the water supply in Oldsmar, a small city in Florida, was discovered by staff at the plant - they noticed the mouse moving on the screen - and they rushed to take action before any damage was caused.
The attackers breached the facility via TeamViewer, which staff had been using to monitor systems remotely and respond to issues related to the water treatment process.
"While the incident does not appear to be particularly complex, it highlights the need to strengthen the cybersecurity capabilities across the water and wastewater industry similarly to other critical infrastructure sectors."
"Based on the information available at this moment, this attack seems to lack any sophistication that could trigger more profound reactions. The fact that the perpetrator didn't conceal his visual presence to the personnel monitoring the water treatment operation is the first signal that suggests the relatively low complexity of the attack. Furthermore, according to the reports of the incident, the attacker increased the levels of sodium hydroxide by a significant amount, typically monitored by automated systems, which likely suggests that the threat actor didn't possess a specific background knowledge of the water treatment process."
"The cyberattack against the water supply in Oldsmar, Florida, last week should come as a wakeup call. Cybersecurity professionals have been talking about infrastructure vulnerabilities for years, detailing the potential for attacks like this, and this is a near perfect example of what we have been warning about. Though this attack was not successful, there is little doubt a skilled attacker could execute a similar infrastructure attack with more destructive results. Organizations tasked with operating and protecting critical public infrastructure must assume the worst and take more serious measures to protect their environments."
"The thing we need to understand is that you don't have to be a highly skilled attacker to be able to successfully breach a system like this. Although alarms would've been triggered before any dangerous water reached anyone's taps, this plant was very lucky that the worker noticed his mouse moving and was able to address it quickly. Water plants are not known for their security resources, and between budget cuts and COVID keeping people working remotely, they're even more vulnerable. It's becoming more and more easy to access systems like these by people who have hardly any experience at all."