KDKA
Officials at the Aliquippa Water Department said a pro-Iranian group claimed to have hacked the system.
CNN
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Federal authorities are investigating a group of pro-Iranian hackers who claim to have committed the crime. cyber attack at the Pennsylvania Water Authority, according to state lawmakers and water authority officials.
The group hacked Aliquippa’s system last week, but water service or water quality was not affected, Robert J. Bible, a Pittsburgh area water official, told CNN.
The incident is one of several that have highlighted growing concerns about pro-Iranian hackers and vulnerabilities in U.S. infrastructure. Officials are concerned that cyberattacks on businesses and service providers could have a knock-on effect on critical infrastructure operators, including hospitals and utilities.
Officials were alerted on Friday to a communication outage at a station that provides increased water pressure to two townships. Bible, general manager of the Aliquippa Water Department, said the computer screen that helps control the station’s pumps was blank when on-call staff arrived.
According to Bible, after replacing the battery, it “displayed a red screen indicating a hacking notification” and immediately shut down while the system switched to manual mode.
No other facilities were affected, and there was no disruption to water service or impact on water quality “at any time,” the Bible said. State and federal authorities were contacted Saturday and an investigation is underway, he said.
“Federal authorities are assisting with the investigation and I stand ready to continue to assist them,” U.S. Rep. Chris Delzio said in a statement this week. Delzio said there was no loss of water service to those affected.
Aliquippa Water Authority Chairman Matthew Motz told CNN affiliates that the hacked machines used a system called Unitronics with Israeli-owned components. KDKA.
The group has not claimed responsibility for X, formerly known as X. twitterbut since the Oct. 7 attack, it has claimed responsibility for hacking several water treatment facilities in Israel, which CNN claims has not been substantiated.
CNN has reached out to Israeli authorities for comment.
“I will hereby call for a full investigation and accountability for the attackers, and I am calling for bipartisan support on the House Armed Services Cyber, Information Technology, and Innovation (CITI) Subcommittee to strengthen the defense of the United States.” “We will continue our efforts,” Deluzio said. statement on social media Sunday.
CNN has reached out to Pennsylvania State Police as well as federal authorities including the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security.
Recent cyberattacks forced multiple hospitals in several states to reroute ambulances on Thanksgiving Day.
Some facilities were forced to reschedule non-urgent surgeries. All of the affected hospitals were owned or partially owned by Ardent Health Services, a Tennessee-based company that owns at least two dozen hospitals in five states.
a new federal program It is intended to alert important American companies that their systems are vulnerable. ransomware attack. The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said it has warned 60 organizations in sectors such as healthcare and water services that they are vulnerable to such attacks.
Israeli and U.S. officials said after suspected Iranian hackers claimed a series of recent attacks on Israeli surveillance cameras. Potential ransomware attack.
FBI filed charges In 2021, the Iranian government sponsored an attempted hack at Boston Children’s Hospital, which did not put patients at risk but alarmed U.S. authorities. Tehran denied the allegations.
In recent weeks, U.S. officials have been preparing for a similar scenario in which Iranian hackers carry out a devastating attack on U.S. critical infrastructure, a senior U.S. official previously said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press. told CNN. .