Cyberattacks on U.S. energy infrastructure have been on the rise in 2024. According to the 2024 Thales Data Threat Report, 42% of critical infrastructure companies, including those in the energy sector, suffered data breaches...more
As part of the Biden Administration’s efforts to align energy cybersecurity efforts across the country, the U.S. Department of Energy (“DOE”) has funded the release of a set of energy distribution cybersecurity baselines for...more
3/7/2024
/ Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Electricity ,
Energy Reform ,
Energy Sector ,
Incident Response Plans ,
Popular ,
Power Grid ,
Security and Privacy Controls ,
Utilities Sector
On March 24, 2022, the Department of Justice unsealed two indictments charging four Russian government employees in two hacking campaigns that targeted critical infrastructure in the energy sector. We cover these indictments...more
4/22/2022
/ Criminal Prosecution ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA) ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Sector ,
FBI ,
Hackers ,
Joe Biden ,
Mitigation ,
Popular ,
Russia
On July 28, 2021, President Biden issued a Memorandum on Improving Cybersecurity for Critical Infrastructure Control Systems. The Memo recognizes that the protection of the nation’s critical infrastructure lies not only with...more
On May 10, 2021, the hacking group DarkSide succeeded in shutting down the Colonial Pipeline with a ransomware attack that highlighted the vulnerability of the U.S. energy sector to cyberattacks. The attack led to a panic...more
6/7/2021
/ Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Energy Policy ,
Executive Orders ,
Hackers ,
National Security ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Popular ,
Ransomware ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Supply Chain ,
TSA
This post is a follow up from our recent discussion of the cyberattack that took the 5,500-mile Colonial Pipeline offline last week and the growing threat ransomware poses to our nation’s energy system. On May 10, 2021, a...more
5/13/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Emergency Response ,
Executive Orders ,
FERC ,
GAO ,
Hackers ,
National Security ,
NERC ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Popular ,
Ransomware ,
Supply Chain ,
Threat Management
It was not a matter of if, but when. On Friday, Colonial Pipeline Company, the largest U.S. fuel pipeline, closed its entire 5,500-mile pipeline system that carries liquid fuels, including gasoline, from the Gulf Coast of...more
5/11/2021
/ Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Emergency Response ,
Energy Sector ,
Information Technology ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Popular ,
Ransomware
According to media reports, ransomware attacks against the manufacturing industry have more than tripled compared with last year. This dramatic rise in cyberattacks poses serious concerns about the vulnerability of critical...more
12/18/2020
/ Bulk Electric System ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Sector ,
Executive Orders ,
Information Technology ,
Manufacturing Facilities ,
Power Grid ,
Ransomware ,
Trump Administration
Editors’ Note: This is the first in our fifth-annual end-of-year series examining important trends in data privacy and cybersecurity in the coming year.
The Growing Threat of Ransomware -
According to media reports,...more
12/17/2020
/ Bulk Electric System ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Sector ,
Executive Orders ,
Information Technology ,
NERC ,
Popular ,
Power Grid ,
Ransomware ,
Trump Administration
On July 23, 2020, the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), joined by the National Security Agency (NSA), issued a cybersecurity alert to operators of critical...more
The (“FERC” or “Commission”) recently issued an Order approving a request by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (“NERC”) to defer the implementation of several Reliability Standards scheduled to take effect...more
Security experts nationwide warn that the United States should expect serious cyberattacks from Iran in the next few months. The anticipated attacks, retaliation for United States’ killing of Major General Qasem Soleimani,...more
1/15/2020
/ Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Cyber Threats ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Energy Sector ,
Foreign Relations ,
Hackers ,
Iran ,
Oil & Gas ,
Power Grid ,
Terrorist Threats
Editors’ Note: This is the second in our fourth-annual end-of-year series examining important trends in data privacy and cybersecurity in the coming year. Our previous entry discussed the CCPA. Up next: a look into how...more
12/17/2019
/ Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Electric Generation Suppliers ,
Energy Sector ,
Hackers ,
Natural Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Popular ,
Power Grid ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Risk Management ,
Utilities Sector
In 2018, privacy and data security crossed a number of thresholds. In the public mind, through high-profile data breaches and revelations about unexpected uses of personal information, questions of privacy became much more...more
4/26/2019
/ Attorney General ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
COPPA ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FCC ,
FERC ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HIPAA Privacy Rule ,
Political Advertising ,
Popular ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Earlier this month, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) Chairman Neil Chaterjee testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on issues related to cybersecurity in the energy...more
3/1/2019
/ Congressional Investigations & Hearings ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Energy Sector ,
Federal Power Act ,
FERC ,
NERC ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Reporting Requirements
Editors’ Note: This is the first in our third annual end-of-year series examining important trends in data privacy and cybersecurity during the coming year. Up next: comparing data protection regulations aimed at children...more
On July 19, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC” or “Commission”), pursuant to its authority under section 215 of the Federal Power Act, issued a final rule directing the North American Electric Reliability...more