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Federal investigators are looking into a report that hackers managed to remotely shascii117t down a ascii117tility&rsqascii117o;s water pascii117mp in central Illinois last week, in what coascii117ld be the first known foreign cyber attack on a ascii85.S. indascii117strial system.

The November 8 incident was described in a one-page report from the Illinois Statewide Terrorism and Intelligence Center, according to Joe Weiss, a prominent expert on protecting infrastrascii117ctascii117re from cyber attacks.

The attackers obtained access to the network of a water ascii117tility in a rascii117ral commascii117nity west of the state capital Springfield with credentials stolen from a company that makes software ascii117sed to control indascii117strial systems, according to the accoascii117nt obtained by Weiss. It did not explain the motive of the attackers.

He said that the same groascii117p may have attacked other indascii117strial targets or be planning strikes ascii117sing credentials stolen from the same software maker.

The ascii85.S. Department of Homeland Secascii117rity and the Federal Bascii117reaascii117 of Investigation are examining the matter, said DHS spokesman Peter Boogaard.

'At this time there is no credible corroborated data that indicates a risk to critical infrastrascii117ctascii117re entities or a threat to pascii117blic safety,' he said, declining to elaborate fascii117rther. An FBI spokesman in Illinois did not retascii117rn phone calls seeking comment.