Vulnerable grid infrastructure leads utilities to seek security through private data transmission

The proliferation of critical infrastructure systems connected to public networks across the globe over the last decade has provided new entry points for would-be cyber terrorists to exploit, putting the U.S. electric grid at risk.

The vulnerable points of entry were exposed in December when a Russian hacking group infiltrated a power grid in western Ukraine and cut the power off for 80,000 residents for six hours. The hackers utilized a software program called BlackEnergy3 to prohibit access to the grid’s computer system.

As more utility systems in the United States make the switch from traditional grid operations to automated “smart grid” systems, new vulnerabilities are starting to emerge, causing concern from many state and federal lawmakers.

“Historically, most of the utilities in the country have not automated yet and look similar to how they operated 100 years ago,” Stewart Kantor, CEO of Full Spectrum, Inc., a Sunnyvale, California-based provider of private wireless broadband networks to electric utilities and other critical infrastructure, recently said in an interview with Daily Energy Insider. “Now they’re going through a grid automating process. If the grid was not hooked up to the internet or public networks, there would be very little risk of a cyber attack.”

As new sources of energy are introduced to the grid, including solar panels and wind power, management problems, such as grid overload, emerge. These problems have incentivized utility companies to automate their systems.

“There are multiple aspects of public networks that are problematic for utilities,” Kantor said. “For instance, public networks are built for peak capacity, which is usually centered on peak drive time commute.”

Kantor said that contemporary public network data systems are not built to withstand the massive influx of voice and data transmission that would come in the event of a terrorist attack or a natural disaster. Cell modems in particular are vulnerable to a denial-of-service attacks, which renders data networks and voice transmission unavailable to users.

While private networks can experience many of the same problems that public networks face, current best practices for utilities involve using private networks for regular communication, like FullSpectrum’s FullMAX technology.

FullMAX technology allows utility companies to utilize their privately operated mobile voice towers to provide their technicians with a private data system independent of public networks.

“The thing that’s unique about our technology is if you plan to do a private version of long-term evolution (LTE) data transmission or a 4G product, the technology built for consumer networks is far too costly to be done in a private way,” Kantor said.

Full Spectrum’s base stations, devices that connect wireless devices to a central hub and allow connections to a network, can transmit signals over 2,800 square miles, compared to typical LTE towers, which can only transmit over a 30 square mile radius.

“If a utility company wanted to buy an LTE-type system and do it themselves, it would cost them 100 times what it would cost for one of our systems and they would need 100 times the towers,” Kantor said.

Kantor added that companies buy Full Spectrum’s base stations and a radio modem and attach them to various points along the grid to provide complete coverage.

The Maple Grove, Minn.-based Great River Energy, a Full Spectrum customer, cited the need for a highly reliable and secure private network as a major reason for its recent switch to FullMAX technology. As the U.S. electric grid continues to modernize at a rapid pace, more utility companies are expected to look to private networks to solve their cybersecurity and efficiency needs.