U.S. Government Issues Public Warning on Cyber Attacks Against Energy Companies

The United States government issued a public notice warning about the risk of cyber attacks on energy companies, including water, electricity, and industrial sectors. Reuters reported on Saturday, October 21, that this notice was released by the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security. These two organizations indicate that the hackers' campaign against energy companies and industries is 'still ongoing.' Reuters described this notice as 'rare' and considered it the latest evidence of the 'growing threat' of cyber attacks on energy industries and other public infrastructures. The notice from the two federal organizations, which was sent via email on Friday night, states that at least since May, over the past six months, nuclear, water, electricity, and aviation infrastructures have been targeted by cyber attacks. The notice mentions that unidentified hackers have managed to infiltrate several targeted networks; however, it is unclear whether these cyber attacks have resulted in any casualties or caused any sabotage. According to Reuters, this report, which includes 'six technical documents' regarding the characteristics of the malware used by the hackers, indicates that 'at least one power generation facility' was successfully attacked by the hackers. Reuters states that U.S. officials have been monitoring the activities of these hackers for several months and previously referenced these attacks in a report published last June. The federal notice does not specify the identity or nationality of the hackers or whether they are individuals or state-sponsored. However, the issue of cyber attacks on infrastructure in the U.S. has gained significant attention, especially in recent months since the presidential election that declared Donald Trump the winner. In this context, at the beginning of 2016, the United States indicted seven Iranians for their involvement in cyber attacks from 2011 to 2013 against several American banks and a dam in New York. The U.S. Attorney General stated at that time in a press conference that the sabotage caused by these seven Iranians resulted in tens of millions of dollars in damages to the banks and a dam in New York. In response to this action, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson described the U.S. government's indictment against these seven Iranians for cyber attacks on banks as lacking 'documented evidence.' In June of this year, a top-secret document from the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) was released, indicating that the Russian military intelligence agency had attempted multiple times last year to infiltrate the voting systems of the U.S. presidential election. According to this alleged document, hackers were placing malware through fake emails on the computers of their targets, thereby managing to infiltrate state and local election bodies in the U.S. Last September, a U.S. security company reported identifying a group of hackers 'possibly linked' to the Islamic Republic that had been involved in cyber attacks on foreign companies.