US pipelines ordered to increase cyber defenses after hack

WASHINGTON — U.S. pipeline operators will be required for the first time to conduct a cybersecurity assessment under a Biden administration directive in response to the ransomware hack that disrupted gas supplies in several states this month. The Transportation Security Administration directive released Thursday also requires that pipeline owners and operators report any cyber incidents to the federal government and have a cybersecurity coordinator available at all times to work with authorities in the event of an attack like the one that shut down Colonial Pipeline. Pipeline companies, which until now operated under voluntary guidelines, could face financial penalties that start at $7,000 per day if they fail to comply with a security directive that reflects an administration focus on cybersecurity that predates the May attack on Colonial, senior Department of Homeland Security officials said. DHS, under Mayorkas, launched a “60-day sprint” to focus the agency on the ransomware threat weeks before the Colonial Pipeline hack became publicly known on May 7.