Minnesota state water operations were targeted by a series of cyberattacks on Sunday and Monday, according to officials. The incidents have triggered boil water notices and forced manual operations for affected systems.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) warned Thursday that similar attacks could target water and wastewater operators nationwide, citing a significant increase in incidents involving “programmable logic controllers.” CISA reported that outside actors have been changing passwords and locking out operators from these critical systems.
“This activity has resulted in boil water notices and sustained manual operations,” CISA stated.
One official remarked: “I think Minnesota ought to get its act together.” Another added: “I don’t think there was an Iranian cyberattack. I think Minnesota ought to get its act together.”
CISA noted that its warning did not specifically mention Iran or Minnesota, but U.S. officials are actively investigating whether Iran is responsible for the attacks. The agency urged operators to remove programmable logic controllers and other operational technology from the internet as soon as possible.
