Syndication: Online Athens
After a cyber-attack shut down nearly half of Colonial Pipeline’s east-coast gas delivery, CEO Joseph Blount says to expect gas shortages even once the pipeline fully opens, in a private meeting Monday.
Colonial Pipeline expects to restore all service by the weekend, but shortages are starting to impact much of the southeastern states. GasBuddy’s Patrick DeHaan reported that 7.6% of Virginia and 7.5% of North Carolina is sold out of gas.
GASOLINE OUTAGES as of 1pm CT…
GA 5.2%
AL 0.5%
TN 0.1%
SC 2.9%
NC 7.5%
FL 2.7%
VA 7.6%— Patrick De Haan ⛽️📊 (@GasBuddyGuy) May 11, 2021
Bloomberg reported that the pipeline company was in the process of developing a restart plan but would not resume shipping oil until the ransomware was removed. The FBI confirmed Monday that the hacking group DarkSide was responsible for the security breach.
In a media statement released Monday, Colonial Pipeline assured that things would improve with patience.
“Our primary focus continues to be the safe and efficient restoration of service to our pipeline system, while minimizing disruption to our customers and all those who rely on Colonial Pipeline,” the statement said. “We appreciate the patience of the traveling public and the support we have received from the Federal Government and our peers throughout the industry.”
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on Tuesday that this attack should be a lesson for private companies to prevent things like this from happening again:
“This is ransomware that has been out there for some time,” Psaki said. She added:
“In this White House and in this government we have ensured that there is increased cooperation between the public and private sector, but a big lesson from this is the need for all companies to harden their cyber security apparatus to ensure they are protecting themselves.”
You can listen to the full quote here.
