Cyberattacks on water systems are increasing, EPA warns, urging utilities to take immediate action
CBSN
Cyberattacks against water utilities across the country are becoming more frequent and more severe, the Environmental Protection Agency warned Monday as it issued an enforcement alert urging water systems to take immediate actions to protect the nation's drinking water.
About 70% of utilities inspected by federal officials over the last year violated standards meant to prevent breaches or other intrusions, the agency said. Officials urged even small water systems to improve protections against hacks. Recent cyberattacks by groups affiliated with Russia and Iran have targeted smaller communities.
Some water systems are falling short in basic ways, the alert said, including failure to change default passwords or cut off system access to former employees. Because water utilities often rely on computer software to operate treatment plants and distribution systems, protecting information technology and process controls is crucial, the EPA said. Possible impacts of cyberattacks include interruptions to water treatment and storage; damage to pumps and valves; and alteration of chemical levels to hazardous amounts, the agency said.
This story previously aired on Sept. 15, 2018. News report: Today, in a 5-1 decision, the California State Supreme Court ruled that Rodney Alcala did not receive a fair trial. Juror: We, the jury, find the defendant, Rodney James Alcala, guilty of the crime of murder in the first degree. Victim Robin C. Samsoe… "I wanna kill, I wanna kill, I wanna see blood and gore and guts and veins in my teeth. Eat dead burnt bodies. I mean, kill, kill, kill, kill." Jury member [in court]: We, the jury … determine that the penalty to be imposed upon defendant, Rodney James Alcala, to be death. D.A. Cyrus Vance to reporters: For both families, who had lost all hope that these cases would ever be solved, the pleas by Rodney Alcala, and today's sentencing brings closure to painful chapters in their lives.
A new law aims to strengthen reporting requirements for technology companies to combat online predators seeking to exploit children. One dad told CBS News that he hopes the law will save children like his son, who died by suicide after becoming ensnared in a "sextortion" scheme when he was 17 years old.