Canada says hacktivists breached water and energy facilities

The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security warned today that hacktivists have breached critical infrastructure systems multiple times across the country, allowing them to modify industrial controls that could have led to dangerous conditions. The authorities issued the warning to raise awareness of the elevated malicious activity targeting internet-exposed Industrial Control Systems (ICS) and the need to adopt stronger security measures to block the attacks. The alert shares three recent incidents in which so-called hacktivists tampered with critical systems at a water treatment facility, an oil & gas firm, and an agricultural facility, causing disruptions, false alarms, and a risk of dangerous conditions. "One incident affected a water facility, tampering with water pressure values and resulting in degraded service for its community," describes the bulletin. "Another involved a Canadian oil and gas company, where an Automated Tank Gauge (ATG) was manipulated, triggering false alarms." "A third one involved a grain drying silo on a Canadian farm, where temperature and humidity levels were manipulated, resulting in potentially unsafe conditions if not caught on time." The Canadian authorities believe that these attacks weren't planned and sophisticated, but rather opportunistic, aimed at causing media stir, undermining trust in the country's authorities, and harming its reputation. Sowing fear in societies and creating a sense of threat are primary goals for hacktivists, who are ...