Filling stations in some states, meanwhile, were selling up to three times their normal amount of gasoline, leading to price hikes of 8 to 10 cents a gallon. Some stations have run out of fuel, and others have limited purchases to 10 gallons or less.
While all indications are that the attack hit the IT portion of the company’s network and didn’t extend to the operational technology portion that controls pipeline operations, Colonial said on Saturday that it initiated the shutdown as a precautionary measure.
Colonial Pipeline has said it’s working with third-party cybersecurity experts, law enforcement, and other federal agencies, including the Department of Energy and the FBI. Company representatives didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
An outside audit of Colonial Pipeline in 2018 found “atrocious” information management practices and “a patchwork of poorly connected and secured systems,” The Associated Press reported, citing an author of the report. Meanwhile, Reuters, citing unnamed sources, said that Colonial Pipeline had no plans to pay the ransom. Other news organizations, also relying on unnamed sources, later said Colonial paid a ransom of nearly $5 million.
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