Hackers Have Already Embedded Code in U.S. Electrical Grid

WASHINGTON (CNN) — Computer hackers have embedded software in the United States’ electricity grid and other infrastructure that could potentially disrupt service or damage equipment, two former federal officials told CNN.

The ex-officials say code also has been found in computer systems of oil and gas distributors.

The code in the power grid was discovered in 2006 or 2007, according to one of the officials, who called it “the 21st century version of Cold War spying.”

The U.S. power grid isn’t the only system at risk. The former officials said malicious code has been found in the computer systems of oil and gas distributors, telecommunications companies and financial services industries.

Napolitano said the vulnerability of the nation’s power grid to cyberattacks “has been something that the Department of Homeland Security and the energy sector have known about for years,” and that the department has programs in place to fight such attacks.

Security experts say such computer hacking could be the work of a foreign government — possibly Russia or China — seeking to compromise U.S. security in the event of a future military conflict.