CBS19, SARAH ROBINSON

The cyberattack on the Colonial Pipeline underscores the vulnerability of the United States’ energy infrastructure, according to Seventh District Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger, who used to be a CIA officer.

Spanberger says she is closely watching the Biden administration’s next steps to hold cybercriminals accountable and prevent crimes like this from happening in the future.

She wants to work with Congress to ensure that the Department of Justice and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (finCEN) are able to aggressively investigate money laundering schemes.

She says money is the cause of all of this.

“This is a money-making scheme for them. Without the ability to actually profit from these aggressive attacks, these nefarious criminal organizations would not be able to achieve what they wish to achieve,” Spanberger said.

Based on her experience, she thinks the U.S. has to stand strong against the Russian government, which carries out attacks against American agencies and does not hold criminal gangs like DarkSide accountable. 

Spanberger says the U.S. needs to act now to implement a strategy that includes investing in cybersecurity, identifying new threats before they act, and increasing collaboration with allies.