Heightened Security Following Increased US-Iraq Tensions

Following the January 2 U.S. drone strike in Iraq that killed Iranian Major General Qassem Soleimani, tensions between the U.S. and Iran have been high. While most intelligence sources believe that any physical attacks against the U.S. will be directed at troops stationed in the Middle East, there has been heightened concern over potential physical and cyber threats to U.S. critical infrastructure.

On January 4, the Department of Homeland Security issued a National Terrorism Advisory Bulletin noting the possibility of attacks against the homeland. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency at DHS has advised facilities with chemicals of interest, whether tiered or not, to increase their security posture. On January 14, CISA issued an activity alert suggesting the immediate application of critical patches to Windows-based systems to close certain security gaps.