US agencies warn of AI-powered attacks on Siemens industrial controllers

U.S. federal agencies warn that threat actors are using AI-assisted scripting combined with open-source industrial libraries (snap7/python-snap7) to create exploit tools targeting internet-exposed Siemens S7 PLCs across water, energy, manufacturing and other critical infrastructure sectors; actors scan with internet search services, exploit weak/default credentials to gain read/write access via S7comm, and pose an active risk of disruption, with agencies recommending inventorying PLCs, removing internet exposure, patching, and strengthening access controls.