Nicole Perlroth

Like, what are you talking about?

Like, what are you talking about?

By the time the two men from FBI and CISA, the cyber defense agency, arrived at Nick's office that Monday in 2023, Volt Typhoon had been in Littleton's networks for 10 months. But beyond Littleton, they'd been burrowing into American infrastructure, ports, airports, railways, water, pipelines, the power grid, for years.

By the time the two men from FBI and CISA, the cyber defense agency, arrived at Nick's office that Monday in 2023, Volt Typhoon had been in Littleton's networks for 10 months. But beyond Littleton, they'd been burrowing into American infrastructure, ports, airports, railways, water, pipelines, the power grid, for years.

This is real. What was the response or range of responses?

This is real. What was the response or range of responses?

For Nick, the implications of this kind of infiltration are clear.

For Nick, the implications of this kind of infiltration are clear.

The first inkling that the PRC might be pivoting into U.S. infrastructure had surfaced well over a decade ago, buried in the noise of 2012. Late that year, a Canadian company you've never heard of, in an industry that's as dry as they come, discovered it had been hacked, badly, by China. This wasn't huge news. At the time, I was busy unspooling our own attack.

The first inkling that the PRC might be pivoting into U.S. infrastructure had surfaced well over a decade ago, buried in the noise of 2012. Late that year, a Canadian company you've never heard of, in an industry that's as dry as they come, discovered it had been hacked, badly, by China. This wasn't huge news. At the time, I was busy unspooling our own attack.

And remember, this was a period when every company with any data of interest was getting hacked by the CCP. And at first glance, this case looked no different. The victim was the Canadian division of a company called Telvent.

And remember, this was a period when every company with any data of interest was getting hacked by the CCP. And at first glance, this case looked no different. The victim was the Canadian division of a company called Telvent.

Telvent's, quote, industrial automation software gives companies the ability to keep tabs on their oil and water pipelines and power lines from afar. Using Telvent software, engineers can detect a pipeline leak 100 miles offshore or a faulty circuit breaker in the grid.

Telvent's, quote, industrial automation software gives companies the ability to keep tabs on their oil and water pipelines and power lines from afar. Using Telvent software, engineers can detect a pipeline leak 100 miles offshore or a faulty circuit breaker in the grid.

A water utility worker could use Telvent software to detect a burst pipe or potentially any unhealthy fluctuations in chemicals, like fluoride. If you've ever heard techies talk about software eating the world, this is what they mean.

A water utility worker could use Telvent software to detect a burst pipe or potentially any unhealthy fluctuations in chemicals, like fluoride. If you've ever heard techies talk about software eating the world, this is what they mean.

We have been baking software into everything from our gas and water systems to your Domino's pizza order, with nary a care for how all this digital convenience and connectivity might one day be used against us. I'd never heard of Telvent until I got a call from a guy named Dale Peterson. Dale spent his early career doing cryptography at NSA.

We have been baking software into everything from our gas and water systems to your Domino's pizza order, with nary a care for how all this digital convenience and connectivity might one day be used against us. I'd never heard of Telvent until I got a call from a guy named Dale Peterson. Dale spent his early career doing cryptography at NSA.

These days, he's one of the world's leading consultants in industrial control security, an especially terrifying subset of the cybersecurity industry that examines the myriad ways hackers can break into our pipelines, water systems, chemical plants, and, well, you get the picture. If there's an incident brewing at a utility or a pipeline, chances are Dale knows about it.

These days, he's one of the world's leading consultants in industrial control security, an especially terrifying subset of the cybersecurity industry that examines the myriad ways hackers can break into our pipelines, water systems, chemical plants, and, well, you get the picture. If there's an incident brewing at a utility or a pipeline, chances are Dale knows about it.