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Scope of Hacks on U.S. Water Supply Widens as Evidence Points to Iran

nytimes.com

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Re: Scope of Hacks on U.S. Water Supply Widens as Evidence Points to Iran

#91

Post by 1vuio0pswjnm7 »

1vuio0pswjnm7 wrote: post #74

28 Jul 2026 22:47:42 UTC Coordinated cyberattack disrupts water utilities in 30 Minnesota communities https://statescoop.com/coordinated-cyberattack-disrupts-wate... https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49091021 [ok] 29 Jul 2026 07:47:11 UTC Cyberattack targeted 30 Minnesota water systems https://mn.gov/mnit/media/blog/?id=38-761869 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49094533 [ok] 30 Jul 2026 17:08:40 UTC U.S. Sees…

Alternative format, more compact

28 Jul 2026 22:47:42 UTC | Coordinated cyberattack disrupts water utilities in 30 Minnesota communities | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49091021

29 Jul 2026 07:47:11 UTC | Cyberattack targeted 30 Minnesota water systems | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49094533

30 Jul 2026 17:08:40 UTC | U.S. Sees Iran as Likely Behind Cyberattack on Minnesota Water Systems | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49112788

30 Jul 2026 23:12:21 UTC | A Leaked Memo Ties Cyberattacks on Minnesota Water Utilities to Iran | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49117018

31 Jul 2026 13:35:38 UTC | US investigating if Iran was behind cyberattack on water systems in seven states | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49122974

31 Jul 2026 18:17:17 UTC | Iranian hackers likely behind Minnesota municipal water cyberattack | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49126761

31 Jul 2026 23:55:10 UTC | Cyberattack on water systems in multiple states has US officials on edge | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49129814

Re: Scope of Hacks on U.S. Water Supply Widens as Evidence Points to Iran

#92

Post by mikewarot »

mindslight wrote: post #84
mikewarot wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The software stack is the hassle. Let's assume you want to monitor the SCADA system doing water treatment, or some other critical task, on an air-gapped network. You add server to the network, it's purpose is to query, the SCADA system and get the status, error logs, process parameters, whatever you need, and spool them into a directory on a drive. A second process on that server then spools them off via a one-way op…

What you're describing is a whole bunch of bespoke engineering. That is the opposite of cheap. It would be interesting to go down this design path trying to make a generic product. I'd aim to dovetail into the bespoke engineering that PLCs already involve. I'd be tempted to design it as something like a modbus target (that PLC engineers would set up the system to write data to), except that modbus sucks rocks as a da…

> only takes one PLC engineer to connect the two sides of the network for their own expedience

The fuzzy way we depreciate the term Engineer shows up in situations like this. An actual Professional Engineer, with a state issued license, would be assuming liability for their actions, and would know better than to bypass an air gap in this manner.

Someone who uses the term willy-nilly, as most programmers seem to do these days, has no such restraints, nor caution, nor deep consideration of consequences.

Re: Scope of Hacks on U.S. Water Supply Widens as Evidence Points to Iran

#93

Post by mindslight »

mikewarot wrote: post #92
mindslight wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What you're describing is a whole bunch of bespoke engineering. That is the opposite of cheap. It would be interesting to go down this design path trying to make a generic product. I'd aim to dovetail into the bespoke engineering that PLCs already involve. I'd be tempted to design it as something like a modbus target (that PLC engineers would set up the system to write data to), except that modbus sucks rocks as a da…

> only takes one PLC engineer to connect the two sides of the network for their own expedience The fuzzy way we depreciate the term Engineer shows up in situations like this. An actual Professional Engineer, with a state issued license, would be assuming liability for their actions, and would know better than to bypass an air gap in this manner. Someone who uses the term willy-nilly, as most programmers seem to do th…

As a former professional embedded design engineer, I'm not terribly swayed by arguments that "real engineering" involves licenses from the state.

Nor do I think that personal liability is a great avenue for moving the needle here, as that would really just be creating indirect regulation through insurance companies (with a specific focus on what the Professional Engineer might be found liable for), while creating an ongoing tax (the insurance premiums) for anyone involved in such work. Why not just write and mandate those codes directly? something like the National Electric Code but focused on best practices for setting up secure control networks.

(And while the NEC does enter into the PE dynamic, there is plenty of work subject to the NEC but that doesn't involve a PE)

Re: Scope of Hacks on U.S. Water Supply Widens as Evidence Points to Iran

#94

Post by krautburglar »

Aurornis wrote: post #28
dylan604 wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Trump plan in Iran is not working. Gotta make them look like the evil bogeyman to get people to support further action.

This conspiracy theory would make more sense if he wasn’t working so hard to divert blame away from Iran: https://www.politico.com/news/2026/07/31/trump-minnesota-wat... > “I blame it on Minnesota because they are grossly incompetent,” Trump said at a cabinet meeting at Camp David on Friday, adding that Walz is “corrupt” and “Iran has bigger problems than worrying about Minnesota.” Asked later if he could rule out Ir…

In this case, I think the chomo-in-chief is correct. If those utilities had done their jobs right, Iran couldn’t touch them.

Re: Scope of Hacks on U.S. Water Supply Widens as Evidence Points to Iran

#95

Post by tomhow »

applicative wrote: post #77
nvme0n1p1 wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not sure what Peru has to do with anything. TFA is about the USA, and usda.gov is an American site. But I bet if the average ancient Peruvian had to choose between their avocados dying or their next-door neighbors dying, they'd choose to save their neighbors. Unfortunately in modern times, I'm not so sure anymore.

[flagged]

> Your idea is 'i heard about desert avocadoes on tiktok and its insane and whoever does it needs machine-gunned.'.

Please don't post this kind of denunciatory rhetoric on HN. It sounds like you have interesting historical knowledge about the history of avocado cultivation in Peru, and we love for this kind of material to be shared here, but the guidelines ask us to converse curiously, not fulminate or berate fellow community members. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

Re: Scope of Hacks on U.S. Water Supply Widens as Evidence Points to Iran

#96

Post by tomhow »

nvme0n1p1 wrote: post #61
halJordan wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's actually insane to me that the nation convulsed over the inability to get water to flint Michigan and people are still over here doing "no one actually deserves water, you use too much of it anyway"

And let's not forget: > Agriculture accounts for about 80 percent of consumptive use in the United States https://www.nifa.usda.gov/topics/water Maybe if we're worried about running out of water, we should prioritize getting the water we do have to actual people. Could the problem be that we're trying to grow avocados in a literal desert? Nah, it's the dang citizens taking too many showers again.

Please don't post snarky flamebait like this on HN. The guidelines make it clear we're trying for something better here. We'd hope that HN users can countenance that water for people and water for growing food (for people) are both important. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
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