The department of homeland protection on Tuesday announced new requirements for U.S. pipeline operators to strengthen cybersecurity following a possible ransomware assault that disrupted gas transport throughout the East Coast.
In an announcement, DHS said it would require operators of federally designated vital pipelines to implement “particular mitigation measures” to prevent ransomware attacks and other cyber intrusions. Operators ought to additionally put into effect contingency plans and behavior what the department calls a “cybersecurity structure layout evaluation.”
It is a brand new reaction by the Biden administration to a series of ransomware attacks and intrusions hitting important U.S. infrastructure and raising fears about American cybersecurity.
The DHS did not immediately launch further details about the steerage, which comes after another directive issued weeks after the May 7 attack on the Georgia-primarily based Colonial Pipeline. That assault brought about the shutdown of a gadget turning about 45% of the gasoline consumed along the East Coast and sparked long lines and gasoline shortages in numerous states.
Colonial paid an anticipated $4.four million ransom, the maximum of which was subsequently recovered by the Justice Department. The FBI has blamed the attack on a Russia-based gang of hackers using the DarkSide ransomware variation.
The Biden management has time and again accused Russia of granting secure haven to crook gangs and seeking to thieve government corporations and personal organizations in diverse sectors. It imposed sanctions in April on a number of sports, including hacking.
Russia has broadly denied being involved in cyberattacks on U.S. institutions, decrying “unfounded accusations” in an assertion last month.
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