American Water Works, the largest regulated water and wastewater utility company in the U.S., was hit by a cyberattack earlier this month, leading the company to pause billing for its millions of customers. The company detected unauthorized activity in its computer networks and systems, prompting it to shut down certain systems and engage cybersecurity professionals to investigate and contain the incident. The company has paused billing and kept its customer portal service offline as it works to bring its systems back online securely.
American Water stated that none of its water or wastewater facilities or operations were impacted by the incident, and services will not be shut off nor will customers be charged late fees during this period. The company provides services to over 14 million people across 14 states and 18 military installations, managing more than 500 water and wastewater systems in about 1,700 communities.
This cyberattack is part of a larger trend of increasing cybersecurity threats across various sectors in the U.S. Federal authorities have expressed concerns over Chinese, Russian, and Iranian hacker groups targeting critical infrastructure such as water systems. Recent cyberattacks have disrupted insurance companies, hospital systems, and other industries, with data breaches affecting billions of records. This incident serves as a reminder of the growing threat posed by cyberattacks on vital infrastructure and the need for heightened cybersecurity measures across all sectors of the economy.
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