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Florida Hack Exposes Danger to Water Systems
A city worker washes down a street after repairs to a water line in Sacramento, California. Cybersecurity experts say water systems need to be vigilant to protect against hackers.
Rich Pedroncelli
A renegade mouse cursor signaled the danger at the water treatment plant in Oldsmar, Florida.
On Feb. 5, a plant operator for the city of about 15,000 on Florida’s west coast saw his cursor being moved around on his computer screen, opening various software functions that control the water being treated. The intruder boosted the level of sodium hydroxide—or lye—in the water supply to 100 times higher than normal.