WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. government is preparing to issue its first cybersecurity regulations for pipelines after the Colonial Pipeline hack that disrupted fuel supplies in the southeastern United States, the Washington Post reported on Tuesday.
The Transportation Security Administration, a unit of the Department of Homeland Security, would require pipeline companies to report cyber incidents to federal authorities, senior DHS officials told the newspaper. It planned to issue a security directive this week.
The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately return messages seeking comment.
After a ransomware attack forced Colonial to shut its entire network, thousands of gas stations across the U.S. Southeast ran out of fuel. Motorists fearing prolonged shortages raced to fill up their cars.
The closure of the 5,500-mile (8,900-km) system was the most disruptive cyberattack on record, preventing millions of barrels of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel from flowing to the East Coast from the Gulf Coast.
(Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Howard Goller)
