WASHINGTON - An October, 2017 report by researchers at Symantec Corp., cited by the U.S. government, has linked recent US power grid cyber attacks to a group of hackers it had code-named ““Dragonfly cyber unit”, and said it found evidence critical infrastructure facilities in Turkey and Switzerland also had been breached.
The Symantec researchers said an earlier wave of attacks by the same group starting in 2011 was used to gather intelligence on companies and...
The idea of a cyberattack on the power grid may invoke images of flickering lights and a race against the clock to block an intrusion – but, often the most serious threats aren’t that obvious or dramatic.Cyber threats that target critical infrastructure facilities like the power grid...
How utilities can protect bulk electric system control centers BY ANDREW GINTER, Waterfall Security While industry experts debate the likelihood of an attack against the power grid, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has already issued an alert that such threats are real and are on the...
The importance of up-to-date critical system monitoring BY MARLEE ROSEN, Rosen Associates Supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) networks contain computers and applications that perform critical capabilities in delivering essential services and commodities (for example, electricity,...
Electric utility executives experience a number of headaches when it comes to data. Forbes reports that electric utilities possess 194 petabytes (that is, one million gigabytes) of data—as of 2009. Now, utility execs are searching for new methods and solutions to manage this incoming flux of...
Utilities are rethinking cybersecurity. The zero-trust model replaces perimeter defense with continuous verification—of every device, vendor, and data path—across the substation and supply chain. The End of Perimeter Thinking For decades, substation cybersecurity meant building walls:...
A coalition of large energy consumers and ratepayer advocates has filed a complaint with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), urging the agency to prohibit transmission owners from independently planning "local" transmission projects exceeding 100 kilovolts (kV). The coalition argues...
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is seeking public input on proposed "ride-through" reliability standards for inverter-based resources (IBRs), including wind, solar, and battery systems. These standards aim to ensure that IBRs can maintain operation during grid disturbances, such as...
The rapid shift toward renewable energy resources (RERs) has placed significant demands on traditional power systems. To address these challenges, modern energy infrastructure is evolving into smart grids, leveraging advanced technologies like Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) to enhance grid...
A small town in North Carolina has filed a lawsuit against Duke Energy, one of the largest utility companies in the United States, alleging that the company has been deceptive in its efforts to downplay the environmental impact of its operations. The lawsuit, filed by the town of Smithfield, claims...
In a significant move that underscores the growing demand for reliable and sustainable energy to power the expanding digital infrastructure, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has approved an interconnection agreement between Talen Energy, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and Exelon. This...
