A cyber attack in Saudi Arabia failed to cause carnage, but the next attempt could be deadly

In August, a petrochemical company with a plant in Saudi Arabia was hit by a new kind of cyber assault. The attack was not designed to simply destroy data or shut down the plant, investigators believe. It was meant to sabotage the firm’s operations and trigger an explosion.

The attack was a dangerous escalation in international cyber warfare, as faceless enemies demonstrated both the drive and the ability to inflict serious physical damage. And US government officials, their allies and cybersecurity researchers worry that the culprits could replicate it in other countries, since thousands of industrial plants all over the world rely on the same US-engineered computer systems that were compromised.

Investigators have been tight-lipped about the August attack. They still won’t identify the company or the country where it is based and have not identified the culprits.