Trump blames governor, not Iran, for Minnesota cyberattack

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said he does not believe Iran is responsible for a recent cyberattack on water systems in Minnesota, putting him at odds with U.S. officials who reportedly suspect Iranian hackers probably orchestrated the attack.

"They blame it on Iran. I don't think so. I think I blame it on Minnesota because they're grossly incompetent," Trump said at a July 31 Cabinet meeting at the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland. "I would blame it on Minnesota and the governor, the corrupt governor of Minnesota."

Trump, who did not present any evidence to support his accusation, has long criticized Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the 2024 Democratic vice presidential nominee, accusing him of enabling Somalia immigrants to carry out fraud against welfare programs in the state.

"They like to say, 'Oh, it's Iran.' Iran should be so lucky. Iran's got bigger problems than worrying about Minnesota," Trump said.

The U.S. is five months into the war in Iran after Trump first launched airstrikes on the country in late February.

Trump's remarks undercut a New York Times report that said investigators believe the cyberattack on more than 30 municipal water systems in Minnesota was probably conducted by Iranian hackers. The report attributed the preliminary finding to unnamed U.S. and Minnesota officials, though officials cautioned investigators had not definitively determined who was responsible.

U.S. cybersecurity agencies are investigating the origins of what state officials called a "coordinated attack." Hackers have targeted water systems in several states, not just Minnesota, according to a report from CNN, which cited U.S. officials. The illicit activity has caused utilities to issue boil-water notices and switch water systems from automatic to manual modes.

"Trump knows exactly who is responsible for this attack, and knows that other states were hit too," Walz said in a statement in response to the president's remarks. "This is what modern warfare looks like, and it further illustrates there's no plan to win a war with Iran."

Walz blamed Trump's Department of Government Efficiency, the former government-slashing agency once led by tech executive Elon Musk, for gutting the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

"DOGE took an axe to CISA and left the U.S. exposed to cyberattacks. Thankfully, our experts in Minnesota were able to identify the vulnerability quickly and work with local communities to stop it," Walz said.

The cyberattacks occurred on July 26 and 27 and affected operational technology used by community water utilities, according to Minnesota IT Services, the state's technology agency. Multiple Minnesota cities reported cybersecurity incidents that impacted their water utility control systems.

According to the state IT agency, the cyberattack impacted technology water systems use to remotely monitor and control equipment. No Minnesota communities have active requests for residents to modify their drinking water use as a result of the attack.

Minnesota's investigation remains active, and the state so far has not attributed the attack to a specific actor.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency previously said federal agencies have issued numerous advisories warning of cyber threats to water and wastewater systems from foreign groups, including Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and state-sponsored groups linked to Russia and China.

Iranian-linked hackers have for years targeted U.S. water systems to varying levels of success. An April 7 CISA advisory warned that Iranian-affiliated hackers were attacking internet-facing programmable logic controllers, computer devices used to interact with machinery and other critical infrastructure networks, manufactured by Rockwell Automation.

A July 22 update to the advisory expanded the scope of the targeting to include devices manufactured by Schneider Electric, Siemens and potentially other manufacturers.

Trump did not explain why he doesn't believe Iran was behind the attack, other than repeating his criticism of Walz.

"I think the governor is behind it. I don't think there was an Iranian cyberattack. I think that Minnesota ought to get its act together. It's one of the worst-run states," Trump said.