A hacker successfully changed the chemical levels in the drinking water to a “dangerous parameters” in Oldsmar Florida.

The hacker infiltrated a computer system set up to allow for the remote control of water treatment operations on Friday, February 5. The 1st infiltration took place at 8 am and then again for a more prolonged intrusion at 1:30 pm.

Luckily for the residents of Oldsmar, the second intrusion which lasted about five minutes was detected right away by an operator who was monitoring the system and saw the hacker move the mouse cursor on the screen and access software responsible for water treatment. Oldsmar city staff assured that none of the rainwater water was delivered to residents and was caught in time.

The unidentified hacker disconnected as soon as they change the sodium hydroxide levels in the water. “Sodium hydroxide, also known as lye, is the main ingredient in liquid drain cleaners. It’s also used to control water acidity and remove metals from drinking water in the water treatment plant,” said Oldsmar Sheriff Bob Gualtieri.

“The hacker changed the sodium hydroxide from about 100 parts per million to 11,100 parts per million. This is obviously a significant and potentially dangerous increase.”

Some residents may feel to make a move to bottled waters like Evian or Fiji, speaking of which check out Fijian rapper Jesswar’s new track.