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.
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McCabe named China, Russia and Iran as the countries that are “actively seeking the capability to disable U.S. critical infrastructure, including water and wastewater.”
This sounds like the sort of thing I’ve heard preppers tell me for the almost 50 years I’ve been around.
And I’ll repeat what I usually say: If society collapses to that point, I don’t want to survive the aftermath. I have no Mad Max fantasies.
No need for societal collapse. Most of my tech friends in Austin have rain collection tanks and emergency generators now after the grid collapse. Same goes with an uncle that moved to Puerto Rico.
It doesn’t take much (not much at all) to put you and your family in a position where you don’t have safe drinking water.
Having some sort of off-grid water storage or access method is not being a prepper.
If having off-grid water and power backup, along with some long term storage consumables (freeze dried and canned food) isn’t prepping, that what is your definition of prepping?
Hoarding guns and alienating your family.
That’s covers most of MAGA.
How long do you expect to be without water and power and have to eat your own food?
Because the people I’m talking about are suggesting indefinitely. No thank you.
Society will not collapse. If it does odds are you won’t survive what caused the collapse in the first place. (if you are a prepper make sure your neighbors know how to access you stash - both so that it doesn’t go to waste if you can’t get to it and because even if you can get to it you will need whatever neighbors survive to rebuild society)
However there are a lot of disasters that are much more likely that society collapse that are worth being prepared for.
As I said to the other person, that’s not being a prepper. The whole idea behind being a prepper is that “The Big One” is coming.
Right, I’m saying the big one isn’t coming - and even if it comes you won’t survive so what is the point.