Colonial Pipeline is the main conduit delivering 45% of fuel to the USA’s entire east coast. It has been shutdown due to a ransomware cyberattack.
Infrastructure is not just roads, railways and bridges. It’s how our energy is made and delivered. That a pipeline serving 50 million people can get caught by a cyberattack should cause every one of us to demand action on upgrading our energy systems including nuclear power plants. This is, without question, a matter of National Security.
Are Republicans, the Neo-Confederate party, willing to endanger this country by refusing to upgrade every aspect of the USA’s infrastructure?
Richard Clarke wrote a book about Cyber War in 2011. Are we taking Cyber Threats seriously enough? What will it take?
U.S. pipeline operator that transports 45% of East Coast fuel shuts entire network after cyberattack
The malicious software used in a cyberattack on Colonial Pipeline, the top U.S. products pipeline operator, was ransomware, a type of malware that is designed to lock down systems by encrypting data and demanding payment to regain access, two cybersecurity industry sources said.
The attack resulted in Colonial Pipeline shutting its entire system to contain the threat. The malware has grown in popularity over the last five years and is most often deployed by cybercriminal groups.
Colonial’s network supplies fuel from U.S refiners on the Gulf Coast to the populous eastern and southern United States. The company transports 2.5 million barrels per day of gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other refined products through 5,500 miles (8,850 km) of pipelines.
Colonial Pipeline says it transports 45% of East Coast fuel supply.
www.cnbc.com/...
Cyber Security of Nuclear Power Plants: US and Global Perspectives
Cyber threats to critical infrastructure are real and actively evolving. Incidents at nuclear facilities in the United States and abroad highlight the importance of developing and implementing rigorous regulatory frameworks, risk-based assessments, and improved digital protection capabilities.
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There are several reasons why the cyber security of nuclear energy is essential to national security. Adversaries may attempt a cyber-attack on a nuclear power plant to access individual expertise, documented information, technology (hardware and software), and nuclear materials. Their goal may be to use a cyber-attack to create a physical outcome to disrupt power, create a radiological release, or increase the threat of nuclear proliferation. Consequences associated with these risks include political damage, loss of public confidence, coercion of interests, environmental damage, economic damage, and casualties. Therefore, it is essential that nuclear facilities strengthen their digital infrastructure to prevent these damaging impacts.
gjia.georgetown.edu/...