Editor’s Note: The following is a letter sent to United States Attorney General Merrick Garland by Senators Robert Casey and John Fetterman, and Congressman Chris Deluzio, seeking prosecution of the individuals responsible for the Saturday cyber attack against the Municipal Water Authority of Aliquippa.
Dear Attorney General Garland,
On November 24, 2023, an Iranian-backed cyber group, the “Cyber Av3ngers,” attacked the Municipal Water Authority of Aliquippa by hacking Israeli-made equipment in the water system. The authority serves the City of Aliquippa and Raccoon, Potter, and portions of Hopewell Townships in Beaver County. We are urging a federal investigation into the attack against our constituents and an aggressive prosecution of the attackers.
Any attack on our nation’s critical infrastructure is unacceptable. If a hack like this can happen here in Western Pennsylvania, it can happen elsewhere in the United States. Folks in Pennsylvania and and across the country deserve peace of mind that basic infrastructure such as their drinking water is safe from nation-state adversaries and terrorist organizations. We know that nation-state adversaries are targeting the weakest link in America’s critical infrastructure. We must ensure that our state and local governments, along with private companies, have cyber-defenses strong enough to fend off attacks from sophisticated actors. In Congress, we are committed to pushing our federal government to help shore up our defenses across our critical infrastructure.
There is a history in Western Pennsylvania of the U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuting cybercrimes involving foreign adversaries, like Chinese military officers and Russian-linked cybercriminals, so our region has solid law enforcement experience for dealing with sophisticated cyber crimes.
We urge the Justice Department to conduct a full investigation and hold those responsible accountable.
Very respectfully,
Robert P. Casey, Jr.
United States Senator
John Fetterman
United States Senator
Chris Deluzio
Member of Congress
See Also:
– Cyber Army Promises More Attacks As FBI NY Takes Aliquippa Case
– Iranian-Linked Cyber Army Had Partial Control Of Aliquippa Water System
