Cyber Security Expert Warns Of Attacks On Infrastructure

We are learning being exposed to the extreme cold is nothing compared to being exposed to a cyber-attack for city infrastructure.

Earlier this month, a hacker remotely accessed the water supply in the city of Oldsmar, Florida.

That person was able to change the amount of Sodium Hydroxide or Lye in the water from 100 parts per million to 11,000 parts per million.

An employee saw the changes and made corrections immediately. The water wasn't released to the public.

News 9 spoke to a local cyber security expert who works with municipalities across the country to prevent attacks.

He said smaller cities are the most vulnerable.

“They don’t have the people, they don’t have the money and they don’t have the time,” said Kevin Owens with Control Cyber in Norman.

Owens said he's working with a smaller city in Oklahoma right now to be better protected.

The federal government is requiring water plants that serve over 3,300 people to get their security assessed.

Owens said sometimes security is as simple as having two factor authentication. That’s when you use a password to gain access initially and then are sent a code to your smartphone to gain more access.