In February, a hacker broke into a remote access program at a Florida cityâs water treatment plant and briefly raised the amount of lye from 100 parts per million to 11,100.
According to the Associated Press, a supervisor for the city of Oldsmarâs plant saw a mouse icon moving across a computer screen and tampering with the chemical. The employee managed to reverse the change, and investigators said there was no danger to the public.
Treatment plants, the AP reported, use lye to treat water acidity, but in large quantities it can cause irritation and burns. Oldsmar officials, the AP said, disabled the remote-access system and noted that there were additional safeguards to prevent the chemical from getting in the water supply.