Poland foils attack on city's water system, amid ‘ongoing' cyber war with Russia
Polish Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski indirectly blamed Russia for the attack in a post on X.
WARSAW - Poland foiled a cyberattack against the water and sewage system of a 'large city', Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski said on Aug 14, adding that a cyber war with Russia was 'ongoing'.
'At the last minute, we managed to ensure that when the attack began, our (security) services found out about it and we shut everything down. We managed to mitigate it,' Mr Gawkowski told web portal Onet.pl, speaking of the attack which took place on Aug 13.
'Yesterday, it was possible to end up in a situation in which one of the larger cities would have been left without water,' he added, refusing to name the city in question in order not to 'stir up people's emotions'.
Mr Gawkowski, who is also the minister of digital affairs, did not indicate who might be the perpetrators of the attack, but in a post on X he referred to Russian hostility.
'No Russian planes will fly into Warsaw nor will tanks roll in – instead, their digital counterparts will appear,' he wrote.
'The first stage of such an attack may involve attempts to cut us off from water, gas and electricity, paralyse communications or halt logistics,' he added.
According to Mr Gawkowski, Poland, which invests heavily in cybersecurity, currently foils 99 per cent of cyberattacks.
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On Aug 13, the Polish national prosecutor's office announced that it had charged three Poles and three Belarusians suspected of
sabotage on behalf of 'foreign intelligence services'.
A Ukrainian citizen accused of acts of sabotage, 'recruited by foreign services', was also arrested that day, according to Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
In July, Mr Tusk told reporters that Poland had so far detained 32 people suspected of 'cooperating with Russian intelligence services'. AFP
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Areas in Singapore that are most at risk from storm surges are likely to be the East Coast and Jurong Island, said Associate Professor Tay Zhi Yung from SIT's engineering cluster. Current-wave and storm-surge models near Singapore's coasts are based on physics and mathematical equations. SIT's model integrates machine learning with existing weather data, such as wind forecasts, to improve the accuracy of storm-surge predictions. 'A data-driven model can provide much faster predictions when compared with physics-based models,' said the project's lead, Associate Professor Victor Wang of SIT's engineering cluster. The four-year project is currently 1½ years in, and the team is looking to incorporate other elements like sustained wind speed and rainfall to improve the model. The other related projects are looking at predicting intense rain and other extreme coastal events more accurately. 'The eventual goal is to develop reliable early warning and operation response for coastal-related flooding occurrences,' said Prof Wang. Separately, since 2021, PUB has been building a $13.4 million model that can simulate and evaluate inland and coastal floods in tandem, based on the latest climate projections. When high tide happens to coincide with an intense deluge, coastal flooding worsens. This coastal-inland flood model is currently being validated and undergoing pilot testing, said Ms Hazel Khoo, director of the coastal protection department at national water agency PUB. Flexible, multi-use options Singapore is also looking at flexible structures that can help it tackle sea-level rise across a range of different scenarios. This could include, for example, flexible seawalls with adjustable heights or modular units that can be added to seawalls. Existing structures used for coastal protection typically do not allow provisions for subsequent add-ons or modifications to adapt to rising sea levels. Researchers are now studying whether a flexible seawall with adjustable heights can also support a concrete structure that allows for multi-function uses, such as a road or a park. PHOTO: PUB But innovative engineering solutions can be deployed to better utilise land. They can also be adapted to future requirements and have multiple uses beyond protecting against sea-level rise. Flood risk expert Matthijs Bos – who works at global engineering consultancy Haskoning – said Singapore could take reference from a sea-facing boulevard in The Hague, Netherlands, which doubles as a recreational spot on good weather days. The popular Scheveningen Boulevard sits on top of a hidden sea wall – replacing a former sand dune ridge – and in front of it lies a widened beach that was topped up with sand. The nourished beach acts as a buffer to weaken waves, and the sea wall prevents the boulevard from flooding during storm events. Mr Bos envisions the future Long Island having a similar concept. 'For the outer edge facing the sea of Long Island, they will make sure it's not only a coastal protection but maybe a nice recreational area to go to. It could be a new waterfront,' he said. Researchers are also studying whether a flexible seawall with adjustable heights can support a concrete structure that allows for multi-function uses, such as a road or a park. The flexible seawall can also be used to separate water bodies to form a coastal reservoir that can be used as a water catchment area to reduce inland flooding and for freshwater storage. Nanyang Technological University's (NTU) Professor Chu Jian, the project's principal investigator, said the flexible seawall will also be more cost-effective as less material is needed to build it. 'If you integrate it for other uses, the overall cost will be much cheaper as it also provides infrastructure,' he said. The three-year project, which started in November 2023, mainly focuses on the design and modelling of the wall. Another project under Prof Chu, who is also the chair of the NTU School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, involves lining the shoreline with tube-like barriers made of natural materials. Each barrier resembles a number of sandbags, but its outer covering is made of plant fibre such as jute. The barrier is filled with a mixture of sand, soya bean powder and calcium ions that will be cemented together to form an erosion-resistant 'rock' after the barrier has been placed. Over a few years, as seawater seeps into the beams, the natural fibres will decompose. But ions from the water will react with the material inside the barrier to make it sturdier. These bundles will not only shield the beach from strong waves but also allow sand and soil to slowly accumulate and raise the shores, turning the beachfront into a natural sea wall of sorts, to catch up with higher sea levels. Such barriers made with environmentally friendly materials are suited for coastlines with fragile ecosystems such as mangroves and intertidal habitats. 'You cannot use concrete walls everywhere,' said Prof Chu, adding that they restrict nature from thriving. Prof Chu hopes to conduct pilot tests for these tube-like barriers in Singapore soon. Existing coastal protection structures can also be retrofitted with innovative solutions such as adding modular, watertight units on top of seawalls. PUB is working with Delta Marine Consultants to explore the use of modular blocks known as XblocPlus – a single layer concrete armour unit placed in a regular pattern along the shoreline – on Singapore's coastlines. It is a flexible and scalable design that minimises land take, as well as has the potential to be integrated with urban developments or natural habitats. The firm is looking forward to potentially test-bed and pilot these blocks here. While the aim is to protect every corner of our coastline from flood waters, there might be a situation where some parts of the island – more remote and with lower footfall – may be left to flood once in a while, suggested Mr Bos and Mr James Lam, Surbana Jurong's executive director for coastal engineering. These floodable areas could be coastal parks, nature spots and beach areas. Mr Lam said: 'Certain places could tolerate flooding for a few hours before it subsides. If it's a parkland, you just have to close it for a few hours… It doesn't mean that you have to stop every centimetre of flooding. You cannot protect everything.'
