Category Archives: Transportation Security Administration (TSA)

Colonial Pipeline CEO says company didn’t have plan for potential ransomware attack

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Colonial Pipeline did not have guidance in place on how to handle a ransom demand from cybercriminals who locked up its systems, its CEO testified in a hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Tuesday. The company’s failure to prepare explicitly for a ransomware attack — despite warnings from Homeland Security Department’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency as early as February 2020 about the risk of such attacks against the pipeline industry — underscores growing concerns from lawmakers that the critical sector needs tighter regulations when it comes to cybersecurity. “We have an emergency response process: See the threat, contain the threat, remediate the threat, and restore,” Colonial Pipeline CEO Joseph Blount said in response to a question from Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H. about ransomware-specific guidance. “So in this case, you use the same process, but you use a different set of experts.” Hassan chastized Blount’s response, […]

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TSA cyber requirements would fine pipeline operators for lax security practices

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The Transportation Security Administration will for the first time require pipeline operators to meet mandatory cybersecurity requirements in the wake of a ransomware attack that caused a days-long shutdown of the main artery for delivery fuel to the East Coast. The TSA security directive, expected to be released Thursday, requires certain pipeline operators to report hacking incidents to the Department of Homeland Security’s cybersecurity agency within 12 hours, and would levy fines starting at approximately $7,000 on operators for failing to comply with security guidelines, department officials told reporters in a call. DHS officials estimate that the requirements will apply to roughly 100 pipeline companies, including some of the country’s largest operators. The rules signal a shift to the traditional federal approach to pipeline security, which for years has rested on voluntary guidelines that critics said fell short of meeting the threat. A DHS official said the update is “part […]

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TSA to issue cyber directive for pipeline operators following Colonial ransomware attack

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Following a ransomware attack on an artery for delivering fuel to the East Coast, the Transportation Security Administration plans to issue a security directive requiring pipeline companies to report hacks to federal authorities, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. The Biden administration’s move to issue mandatory requirements for pipeline operators, where there has previously been only voluntary guidelines, follows the days-long shutdown of Colonial Pipeline by a cybercriminal gang known as DarkSide. Gas stations in multiple states ran low on fuel amid a rash of panic buying, and the federal government issued emergency orders to alleviate any fuel shortages. The TSA directive, expected in the coming days, is another signal from the administration that the status quo for federal cyber requirements for critical infrastructure is untenable. President Joe Biden on May 12 signed an executive order that will require federal contractors to promptly report data breaches following the […]

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After Colonial Pipeline hack, lawmakers want more action on pipeline security

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As a major fuel delivery operator gradually returns to service five days after suffering a ransomware attack, U.S. lawmakers are pressing federal agencies on what more they can do to secure the nation’s pipelines from hackers. The disruption at Colonial Pipeline, which operates 5,500 miles of pipelines and provides 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, has renewed longstanding concerns that the lead agency for pipeline cybersecurity, the Transportation Security Administration, is ill-equipped to deal with the scale of security challenges in the sector. A multi-agency initiative to bolster pipeline cybersecurity begun in 2018 is a good start, but more can be done, critics say. “I have raised significant concerns with TSA’s focus on surface transportation, including pipelines, for years,” Rep. Jim Langevin, D-R.I., told CyberScoop. He pointed to a 2018 audit from the Government Accountability Office that found that TSA’s pipeline cybersecurity work was inadequate and lacked […]

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