American Water is Hit by a Cyber Attack Affecting 14m Customers

Uploaded on 2024-10-10 in FREE TO VIEW

The largest regulated water and wastewater utility company in the United States announced Monday 7th October that it was recently the victim of a cyber attack.

New Jersey-based American Water, which provides services to more than 14 million people in 14 states and on 18 military installations, said it became aware of the unauthorised activity on Thursday October 3rd and immediately took protective steps, including shutting down certain systems.

The Source of the Attack has not been Named

The company does not believe its facilities or operations were impacted by the attack and said staffers were working “around the clock” to investigate the nature and scope of the attack.

The company said it has notified law enforcement and is cooperating with them. It also said customers will not face late charges while its systems are unavailable.

According to its website American Water manages more than 500 water and waste-water systems in about 1,700 communities in California, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.

“The Company has taken and will continue to take steps to protect its systems and data, including disconnecting or deactivating certain of its systems,” American Water Works said in the 8-K form, without specifying what was disconnected, or how long it plans to keep the systems offline.

The company noted none of its water or waste-water facilities or operations were negatively impacted by the incident, and that it doesn’t expect the attack to have a material impact, although this may change as the investigation is still ongoing.

If you like this website and use the comprehensive 7,000-plus service supplier Directory, you can get unrestricted access, including the exclusive in-depth Directors Report series, by signing up for a Premium Subscription.