Original full article available here: Cybernetic Security and Critical Infrastructure
Lars Schernikau: Energy economist, merchant of basic products, author (recent book “Unpopular truth … about electricity and the future of energy”)
INC blog details www.unpopular-truth.com
Imagine this … you wake up one morning, and power is out. Without lights, without heat, without phone charger. It is not the result of a predictable storm, or a falling line of the mills … only silence. The culprit? Someone behind a keyboard in the middle of the world.
It is not science fiction. It is not an exercise. It is a growing possibility.
First, we thank Nikola Tesla for his vision of Alternating current (AC)a system that could send electricity much further, more efficiently already high than ever … the same AC that made the Modern energy plid possible that today is part of what we call critical infrastructure.
We have traveled a long way since then, and it is time for us to talk about The risks of cyber attacks in our critical infrastructure.
Smart energy systems are becoming more risky
Yes, digital tools help public services to control and monitor everything from solar panels to mass transmission lines. But on the other hand … Each connection is a potential attack point. As the energy infrastructure becomes more high technology, cyber attacks are also more exposed.
In fact, millions of solar investors, possibly committed through software lagoons, have recently been marked by researchers. Also consider that cross -border power cables, such as the one between Finland and Estonia, has already been captured in cyber fire … The risks are becoming more frequently. So what are we going to do to mitigate these identified risks?
What is really at stake here?
It is not just about flashing lights or loading your phone a little slower. It is a critical infrastructure … the infrastructure that keeps hospitals in operation, the production of factories and living cities. A single directed attack could create chaos in entire regions. In my last blog – Cybernetic Security and Critical Infrastructure , I list some of the background events about the magnitude of such attacks.
And as the energy world is more and more inclined in digital tools, and in decentralized energy systems such as solar energy and wind, the imminent risk continues to grow.
Cyber attacks become cheaper and require a more complex defense | Source: BCG Executive Perspectives
The quiet race in which you did not know that you are
While we move, transmit and load, there is a struggle behind the scene that occurs between the nation states, the computer pirates and the infrastructure operators. Everyone runs to protect or penetrate digital veins that keep energy flowing.
Some countries are already embeding cyber resistance in their network planning. Others? Not so much. The terrifying part is how unequal are the defenses, especially when the systems are interconnected through the borders.
In other words, it really does not matter if its local utility has first level cybersecurity if its upstream partners do not bother. A weak link, and the whole chain shakes.
The conversation about cybersecurity in the energy space is not only for policy engineers and formulators, it is for all of us. If you are curious … or a little alarmed, the complete breakdown is worth your time. Read the full publication here: Cybernetic Security and Critical Infrastructure
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