The Colonial Pipeline...

It, like many utilities and nuclear plants uses a SCADA operating system. Russia, China and others have been hard at work figuring out how to hack or SCADA systems for decades. Be thankful they chose that one instead of some nuclear plants. Or the National (natural) Gas pipeline in the middle of a deep freeze. Be thankful also this is just a ransom ware attack and not a instantaneous hack of all SCADA systems and FAA computers. I believe the Chinese call it Infrastructure war. The crippling of key computer systems such as SCADA or the FAA air traffic computers during periods of high use. MOOTW. No need for a soldier with a gun to bring America to it's knees. The Chinese Army publication Unrestricted Warfare lists lots of attacks without guns being needed that can be launched. Launch enough of them via proxy attackers and to our knees we will go.

The impacted pipeline carries gasoline from various refineries to most of the East Coast states. There are multiple similar pipelines that deliver to the mid West and the West Coast, etc. All of them use SCADA systems. Us oldsters remember the 1973 Arab oil embargo and lines at the gas pumps two miles long. This attack is not that all embracing. However in my neck of the woods most gas stations ran out of gasoline today. President Biden on Monday changed the ICC rules so that gasoline trucks can now fill up directly at a refinery and make deliveries to other states. Of course the numbers of gasoline tankers available is woefully inadequate to meet the needs of automobile owners in the North East. I am running a 2005 SAAB and I don't much go anywhere, and I have 100 gallons of back up fuel (this is a farm property) stashed so it will.take a few days or so before it directly impacts me. Hopefully it will be fixed before then. If not fixed real soon you are going to hear some howls from the folks doing those daily 30 - 80 mile each way work commutes. Luckily the diesel fuel pipelines were not targeted so the trucks carrying food continue to run.

this is why, although i'm cash poor, i got a Dodge Dart that out performs my Chevy Trail Blazer. i kept my TB for recreation because 51 weeks of the year is for work.

I still have about 80 gallons sitting in storage in one of my sheds. I was prepared for something more long term than just a ransomware attack, but my SAAB gets good gas mileage so I never even had to even dip into my stash before filling up yesterday.

Quote "I still have about 80 gallons sitting in storage in one of my sheds."

My lawnmower wouldn't start for the first cut in April. I phoned the service centre and the guy said that it was probably the petrol gone bad. He gets a bunch of mowers in every year. He said people buy petrol in the summer and if it's the same stuff in the mower in April it doesn't work. He said that he dips the corner of a small rag in it and holds a lighter to it, sometimes it doesn't even flame up. Then he has to drain it and clean out the carburettor. So maybe you have 6 months max.