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Hackers Could Cause Blackouts on Smart Grid

by Terrence O'Brien on March 23, 2009 at 07:25 PM

Hackers Could Cause Blackouts on Smart Grid
One of the things that the money in President Obama's tech-laden stimulus bill is supposed to pay for is a massive re-hauling of the U.S.'s energy infrastructure and the deployment of what is called a smart grid. This is a great thing, since smart grids are considered essential to reigning in our power usage and reducing our dependence on foreign oil.

Simply put, smart grids are two-way communication systems that dynamically adjust how power is used in a home in order to minimize load on the grid, thus preventing blackouts and increasing efficiency. The system relies on specialized meters installed in homes that can be controlled over the Internet. This raises a bit of a problem for us paranoid computer types, because this leaves our power grid open to attack via the Internet, and recent studies from security firm IOActive have shown that a smart grid may be vulnerable to hackers on a massive scale.

IOActive found that a hacker with $500 in equipment and a background in electronics and engineering could break into the grid with relative ease. From there, it would be a trivial matter to gain control of hundreds (or even thousands) of meters and cause a blackout.


Part of the problem, critics claim, is that the technology is still too young -- nobody has developed a set of security and communications standards yet. As a result, there be be varying degrees of security based on who controls the grid in a particular area. In addition, localized grids may be unable to communicate with each other, thus reducing the gains in efficiency that are possible with a mature smart grid network.

No one is calling for a halt to the deployment, but industry regulators and experts are urging the government and energy companies to be cautious -- they must work towards addressing many of the outstanding issues facing the development of a secure smart grid, before it's too late. [From: CNET]

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Tags: energy, energy efficiency, EnergyEfficiency, hacker, security, smart grid, SmartGrid

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