Water Utilities are “The New Target of Cyber Attacks,” according to Annual Cyber Threat Report

In its 2019 Cyber Threat Outlook, consulting company Booz Allen Hamilton dedicates a section of its report to cybersecurity challenges among U.S. water utilities, which it says have made them “The New Target of Cyber Attacks” by nation state threat actors. According to the report, “state-linked adversaries probably consider the water supply to be a vulnerable social and economic pain point, like the electricity supply.” However, the report observes that the electric sector is better-secured than the water sector because of its greater prioritization of cybersecurity, more mature information sharing efforts, consolidation of electric utilities into larger companies that allow for increased investments in security teams and technologies, and government regulation intended to prevent cyber attacks. The report states that U.S. water companies should expect reconnaissance activity by nation states attempting to access and gain insights about them, adding that disruptive attacks by these entities are unlikely. Read the document at Booz Allen Hamilton.