The Biden administration announced on Friday a new plan to improve the digital defenses of public water systems.
Radhika Fox, the assistant administrator in the EPA's Office of Water, said hackers had "shut down critical treatment processes" and "locked control system networks behind ransomware," underscoring the current danger.The water sector has long been seen as vulnerable to cyberattack, according to Mark Montgomery, the former executive director of the Cyberspace Solarium Commission, a U.S. government-backed policymaking group.
But Montgomery said the administration's approach - attaching cybersecurity audits to existing sanitary surveys - is inadequate. "The EPA is not in a position to perform its responsibilities due to insufficient personnel and resources, but the states are in no better position," Montgomery said. "Rather than pass the buck, EPA should work with water utilities and establish a joint government/industry organization to establish standards, provide assessment tools and audit the results."
EPA officials say they have a "robust technical assistance program" in place to support public water systems that need cyber support.Tracy Mehan, executive director of government affairs at the American Water Works Association, said the plan has "all sorts of practical problems, which unfortunately, the government seems to be ignoring."
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