Cyberattacks hit 30 Minnesota water plants, Iran link probed

Cyberattacks struck 30 water plants in Minnesota, prompting a federal warning that critical water systems are being targeted through internet-connected control equipment. U.S. and state authorities are investigating whether Iran or hackers tied to the country were behind the attacks, though officials said the attribution remains preliminary. The intrusions hit systems used to remotely monitor and control equipment, including programmable logic controllers, or PLCs. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said threat actors changed passwords to lock out operators, leading to boil water notices and sustained manual operations in some cases. Minnesota IT Services said an impacted system showed confirmed malicious activity, but not every affected community lost water service. The FBI said it is aware of the intrusions, while CISA urged utilities to disconnect PLCs from the internet or use protected remote-access tools.