Water is one of the most vital resources for life and society. But in Mexico, this essential service faces a silent and growing threat: cyberattacks targeting water utilities. What was once seen as a risk exclusive to private companies or banks is now directly impacting the systems that ensure clean water supply and wastewater treatment across the country.
In recent years, multiple water agencies have suffered massive data breaches and ransomware attacks, compromising the privacy of millions and threatening the continuity of critical public services. Most worrying of all is the slow or nonexistent response from government authorities.
One of the most serious incidents occurred at Agua de Puebla, where over 738,000 customer records were leaked. The exposed data included full names, addresses, emails, phone numbers, and birth dates. Additionally, more than 650,000 billing records were compromised, including information about water usage, debts, and contracts.
With this level of detail, attackers can easily carry out identity theft, fraud, and targeted extortion campaigns.
Other utilities like SIAPA Jalisco and SEAPAL Puerto Vallarta were also victims of large-scale leaks. Together, over 1.2 million users were affected. The leaked information ranged from tax data to water consumption metrics—creating opportunities for financial fraud and large-scale blackmail.
In July 2025, Agua y Drenaje de Monterrey fell victim to a ransomware attack that resulted in the theft of around 50,000 customer receipts (19 GB of data), which were later published on the dark web after a $10,000 ransom demand. Stolen data included RFC numbers, addresses, and other sensitive information.
The National Water Commission (Conagua) has been attacked multiple times. In 2023, the BlackByte ransomware paralyzed central servers and regional offices for more than 80 days. To make matters worse, the agency faced irregularities in cybersecurity contracts worth nearly 30 million pesos, and serious deficiencies in internal controls.
The lack of cybersecurity halted administrative procedures and even caused Conagua to deny transparency requests, citing compromised systems.
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Beyond the specific incidents, critical technical flaws continue to endanger institutions. One example is CVE-2024-38063, a vulnerability in Windows' TCP/IP protocol that enables remote code execution. Rated 9.8 in severity (CVSS), this flaw affects over 53,000 devices in Mexico, including Conagua servers.
A working proof-of-concept exploit is already circulating on Telegram forums, meaning even low-skilled attackers could exploit unpatched systems.
Additionally, new Remote Access Trojan (RAT) variants like Remcos have been detected in water agencies across Cajeme, Atlixco, Toluca, León, and Zacatecas. These tools allow attackers to fully control systems, steal credentials, and manipulate operations.
Attacking a water institution is more than just stealing data. These incidents have direct consequences on everyday life:
In short: a successful cyberattack on water systems is a national security threat.
One of the most pressing concerns is the lack of strong incident response plans among government institutions. While Mexico has regulatory frameworks and cybersecurity agencies, their implementation in strategic sectors like water remains weak.
Recent cases show that responses are often delayed, with no clear communication protocols for affected citizens—and a tendency to downplay or deny the severity of incidents, leaving the population vulnerable to fraud and extortion.
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Water utilities must treat their systems as critical infrastructure and implement advanced protection measures:
Human error remains a key entry point. Regular training is crucial to reduce risk, especially to prevent phishing and social engineering attacks.
Government agencies should work closely with cybersecurity specialists like TecnetOne to implement comprehensive prevention and incident response strategies.
Adopt proven industry solutions like those from Acronis, combining data protection, advanced threat detection, and disaster recovery into a single platform.
Cybersecurity in Mexico’s water sector can no longer be an afterthought. Incidents at Agua de Puebla, Jalisco, Monterrey, and Conagua are wake-up calls: water is now a high-value target for cybercriminals.
At TecnetOne, we believe that protecting these systems is protecting the lives of millions. That’s why we urge water operators and authorities to act now to secure this critical infrastructure.
The next major crisis won’t just be about drought or contamination—it could be a cyber crisis if we don’t act in time.