By Stephanie Kelly
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Colonial Pipeline, the largest U.S. refined products pipeline operator, has halted all operations after it fell victim to a cybersecurity attack on Friday, the company said.
The company learned of the attack on Friday and took systems offline to contain the threat, it said in a statement. That action has temporarily halted operations and affected some of its IT systems, it said.
The company has engaged a third-party cybersecurity firm to launch an investigation, and Colonial has contacted law enforcement and other federal agencies, it said.
Reuters reported earlier Friday that Colonial had shut its main gasoline and distillate lines.
Colonial connects Gulf Coast refineries with markets across the southern and eastern United States through about 5,500 miles (8,850 km) of its pipeline system, delivering gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other refined products.
“At this time, our primary focus is the safe and efficient restoration of our service and our efforts to return to normal operation,” the company said.
(Reporting by Stephanie Kelly; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)
