US President Donald Trump has cast doubt on reports that Iran was responsible for a cyberattack targeting water treatment facilities in the state of Minnesota and instead blamed state officials.
"Today, I just want to mention that we heard in Minnesota there was a cyberattack, and they blamed it on Iran. I don't think so," Trump said as he hosted the first-ever televised Cabinet meeting at Camp David.
"I think I blame it on Minnesota because they're grossly incompetent," he added.
Trump said the incident involved a cyberattack on "30 water plants" and criticised Minnesota's leadership.
"There was a cyberattack on 30 water plants, and I would blame it on Minnesota and the governor, the corrupt governor of Minnesota.”
"Iran's got bigger problems than worrying about Minnesota," he added.
US media on Thursday said the cyberattacks carried telltale signs of a hacker group affiliated with Iran.
According to cybersecurity firm Tenable, the method used in the attack "is consistent with" the CyberAv3ngers cybercriminal group, which the US government accuses of operating under Tehran's control.
On July 22, just days before the attack, the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued an advisory warning of an offensive by Iran-affiliated organisations against online control systems for infrastructure in the United States.
