first published week of: 08/04/2014
Security in the smart grid. This topic is getting a lot of attention from governments, utilities, and even consumers. The attention is warranted. Besides air, water, food, and shelter, electricity has become one of mankind’s most fundamental necessities. The reliable flow of electricity is certainly crucial to life in the industrialized world, and is a key factor in facilitating the development of emerging countries.
The prevalent discussion on security in the smart grid tends to focus on cyber security, in this case the ability of embedded devices to join networks and transact data over networks in an authenticated way. While this is a critical step in securing the supply of power to the world in a smart grid environment, this approach is too narrow. It ignores the threats to the smart grid from throughout the life cycle and supply chain of smart grid equipment.
In this article we will explore some threats to the smart grid that are ever present in the supply chain of a smart meter. We will explain why those threats must be considered and remedied to ensure the cyber security of the grid. Finally, we will assess the technologies available to combat these threats. continued…