U.S. Officials Claim Iranians Hacked NY Dam in 2013

TOPICS:HackingIranJoshua Krause

December 22, 2015

By Joshua Krause
It’s no secret that our nation’s infrastructure is not only a crumbling decrepit mess, it’s also incredibly vulnerable to cyber attacks from foreign nations and terrorist groups. Moreover, this potential to inflict mass casualties on a shoe string budget is not lost on our government’s enemies. Should our nation ever go to war with countries like Russia, China, or Iran, they will be able to completely destroy our society without lifting a finger.

A perfect example of this potential was revealed this week, when former and current US officials admitted to The Wall Street Journal, that Iranian hackers had infiltrated a small dam in New York back in 2013. The 20-foot-tall structure is located about 20 miles away from New York City, and is responsible for flood control in the area. The hackers managed to gain access to the dam through a cellular modem, though the specifics of what they could have controlled is not clear.
The fact that the feds refused to inform the public is the least disconcerting aspect of this incident. The breach occurred alongside several cyber attacks against the financial community, which altogether were in response to our government’s attack against their power plants with the Stuxnet virus. So not only has our government failed to secure the infrastructure that we depend on, they provoked the attacks against it.
Joshua Krause is a reporter, writer and researcher at The Daily Sheeple. He was born and raised in the Bay Area and is a freelance writer and author. You can follow Joshua’s reports at Facebook or on his personal Twitter. Joshua’s website is Strange Danger .