Our Energy Infrastructure Has Been Attacked….17 States Issued Emergency Declaration

Politico reported: 

The main fuel supply line to the U.S. East Coast has shut down indefinitely after the pipeline's operator suffered what is believed to be the largest successful cyberattack on oil infrastructure in the country's history — presenting a danger of spiking gasoline prices and a fresh challenge to President Joe Biden's pledges to secure the nation against threats.

The attack on the Colonial Pipeline, which runs 5,500 miles and provides nearly half the gasoline, diesel and jet fuel used on the East Coast, most immediately affected some of the company’s business-side computer systems — not the systems that directly run the pipelines themselves. The Georgia-based company said it shut down the pipelines as a precaution and has engaged a third-party cybersecurity firm to investigate the incident, which it confirmed was a ransomware attack. It first disclosed the shutdown late Friday and said it has also contacted law enforcement and other federal agencies.   

A shutdown that lasts more than a few days could send gasoline prices in the Southeastern U.S. spiking above $3 a gallon, market analysts said. That could deepen the political risks the incident poses for Biden, stealing momentum from his efforts to center the nation's energy agenda on promoting cleaner sources and confronting climate change.

That means much depends on how quickly Colonial can restart the pipelines — which depends in large part on whether the company's cyber consultants can determine that it's safe to do so.

The Epoch Times had more: 

The FBI on Monday confirmed that the DarkSide ransomware was used in the hack of the Colonial Pipeline, which prompted the U.S. Department of Transportation on Sunday to declare a state of emergency for 17 states due to potential fuel shortages.

The law enforcement agency said that the DarkSide cybercriminal ring stole a large amount of data before it locked Colonial’s computers with ransomware—considered possibly the most destructive ransomware attack so far.

“The FBI confirms that the Darkside ransomware is responsible for the compromise of the Colonial Pipeline networks. We continue to work with the company and our government partners on the investigation,” the agency said Monday. The FBI did not provide further details that those two lines.

According to the Boston-based Cybereason firm, DarkSide is an organized group of hackers who sell ransomware to other criminals to carry out cyberattacks.