Charles Dharapak
The Biden team is not covering themselves in glory with how they are responding to the cyberattack on the Colonial Pipeline.
One would think that it’s a rather significant threat to national security with a pipeline that serves 45% of the gasoline and other fuel used on the East Coast, As a result, the U.S. Department of Transportation declared a state of emergency on Sunday night.
But how did the Biden folks respond when queried? They were asked whether they thought the Colonial Pipeline should pay the ransom or what their advice had been to the company?
AP Photo/Andrew Harnik
The Colonial Pipeline which runs from Texas to New Jersey supplies 45% of the East Coast with gasoline and other vital fuel. As such, it is a vital supply line in our infrastructure. As we reported, its business systems came under a cyber attack on Friday, so the company shut down part of its pipeline operations while an investigation is ongoing into what systems have been affected by the attack. The attack is believed to be from a group of ransomware hackers known as Dark Side. One expert called it the “the most significant and successful attack on energy infrastructure we know of in the United States.” As a result, the U.S. Department of Transportation declared a state of emergency on Sunday night.
The Cybersecurity 202: An attack on a critical pipeline highlights the need for stronger ransomware policies washingtonpost.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from washingtonpost.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology Anne Neuberger and Homeland Security Advisor and Deputy National Security Advisor Dr. Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall speak about the Colonial Pipeline cyber attack during the daily press briefing at the White House on May 10, 2021 in Washington, DC. According to news reports, a criminal group from Russia named DarkSide is believed to be responsible for a ransomware cyberattack on the Colonial Pipeline. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
At a press conference listing all the actions taken thus far by the White House to respond to the ransomware attack on the Colonial Pipeline, officials acknowledged that the primary onus on protecting the country from attacks on critical infrastructure remains outside the White House s hands.
Energy Department Leading White House Interagency Response to Pipeline Attack White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, left, security advisers Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall and Anne Neuberger participate in a press briefing at the White House May 10. Evan Vucci/AP Get the latest federal technology news delivered to your inbox.
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The White House has formed an interagency task force in response to a cyberattack on Colonial Pipeline Company with the Energy Department at the helm, according to administration officials.
“The White House convened an interagency team that included the Department of Energy, which is the lead agency for incident response in this case, the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, or CISA, the FBI, the Department of Transportation Safety and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, the Department of the Treasury, the Department of Defense and other agencies,” Deput