Promises and Pitfalls of Smart Grid - Smart Grid (R) Evolution: Electric Power Struggles - page 34

not to eliminate vulnerabilities but to keep protective measures current, given the constant
emergence of new vulnerabilities (Axelrod 2006 ).
Some of these cybersecurity risks are similar to those facing all commercial industries.
For example, in 2009 hackers robbed 179,000 Toronto Hydro customers' names, addresses,
and billing information from their e-billing accounts; this poses a similar challenge to
the 40 million credit cards whose details were stolen from Target in 2013 (Riley et
al. 2014 ) . Other cyberattacks are particular to the electricity sector. Security consultants
have demonstrated the ease with which hackers could install computer worms that could
take over the entire grid. Applied to the electricity system, cyberattacks use potentially
devastating tools and scenarios, including malware designed specifically to damage
particular systems; hardware that can be used to insert malware into unsuspecting systems,
exploiting vulnerabilities in archaic hardware; and attacks routed through third-party
providers of electrical services. Although cybersecurity risks are only one among many
categoriesofterrorsthathauntcontemporarysociety(Beck 1992 ) ,theserisksareespecially
important in the energy sector because of the centrality of energy systems to all aspects
of public life. Increasingly throughout the world, both social well-being and industrial
competitiveness depend on a complex energy system that centers on electricity grids
(European Commission 2013 ; U.S. Department of Energy 2013 ).
Another vulnerability relates to electromagnetic pulses (EMPs), or electromagnetic
fallout that can be triggered by any major explosive burst; however, this vulnerability
is associated with both the conventional electricity system and smart grid (Raloff 2009 ) .
Although EMPs do not harm humans or other life forms, they can destroy modern
electronic systems by introducing massive voltage surges and shutting down vital
infrastructure (Investor's Business Daily Editorials 2014 ) . Suedeen Kelly, of the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission, and George Arnold, of the National Institute of Standards
and Technology, have publicly recognized the serious risks posed by EMPs (Raloff 2009 ).
For some, the hazards of cybersecurity are enhanced by the impossibility of completely
eliminating or even defining the risks associated with information technology in a way
that is operationally useful. For example, the National Infrastructure Plan (Department
of Homeland Security 2006 ) defines cybersecurity as “The prevention of damage to,
unauthorized use of, or exploitation of, and, if needed, the restoration of electronic
information and communications systems and the information contained therein to ensure
confidentiality, integrity, and availability” (p. 103).
While some cyberattacks might focus on disrupting the electricity system, others
concentrate on stealing confidential information and trade secrets. More recent attacks
also include attempts to destroy data, control machinery, and control or disable energy