“For myself, I ask why in the hell are components of the electric grids and water systems DIRECTLY Internet connected to begin with.”
I don’t think they’re using the internet alone. The internet is probably the primary comms path between nodes on the grid since it’s safe and effective most of the time. However, if something appears to be going screwy, it probably falls over to a slower, but more secure / closed circuit means of communication (encrypted satellite, comms over power lines, etc). The only reason I suspect they don’t use the “safest” means of comms all of the time is due to latency.
If they are using the internet alone to keep the power grid active, the people in charge should be fired immediately.
SATCOMS is spendy. MILSTAR is not available for public use. Radio Comms are only as reliable as Hardware and Power is.
Accidents happen. I stopped by one Water Treatment Plant on My day off just minutes after a Chlorine Delivery Truck with the crane still halfway up moving to the second location for unloading the 2000 pound tanks snagged a set of Guide Wire for the 300’ tall Radio Tower that connects the SCADA SYSTEM to the 30+ Remote Sites. POOF!!! We are SCREWED !!! So much for My day off. We called everyone in and sent people to the most critical sites with Cell Phones and went to calling Commands back and forth the rest of the day until We got a Temporary Half Assesed Radio Tower (40’) operational that worked for about 18-20 Sites.
It took 2 weeks to clean up the mess and get the new Tower operational.
“I don’t think they’re using the internet alone. The internet is probably the primary comms path between nodes on the grid since it’s safe and effective most of the time.”
Most of the time only has to fail once.
As I said above, in the past an enemy had to subvert some folks running our infrastructure systems, in order to create a vulnerability in them. The Internet and the range of tools employing it has not made is safer. It has made it possible for a single hacker sitting in Terhan or North Korea to create untold harm.
We have sacrifice security for “speed”. It is not worth it.