Towards an anonymous incident communication channel for electric smart grids

Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems are the underlying monitoring and control components of critical infrastructures, such as power, telecommunication, transportation, pipelines, chemicals and manufacturing plants. Legacy SCADA systems operated on isolated networks, that made them less exposed to Internet threats. However, the increasing connection of SCADA systems to the Internet, as well as corporate networks, introduces severe security issues. Security considerations for SCADA systems are gaining higher attention, as the number of security incidents against these critical infrastructures is increasing. In this survey, we provide an overview of the general SCADA architecture, along with a detailed description of the SCADA communication protocols. Additionally, we discuss certain high-impact security incidents, objectives, and threats. Furthermore, we carry out an extensive review of the security proposals and tactics that aim to secure SCADA systems. We also discuss the state of SCADA system security. Finally, we present the current research trends and future advancements of SCADA security.

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A Survey on SCADA Systems: Secure Protocols, Incidents, Threats and Tactics

Pliatsios

Sarigiannidis

Λάγκας

et al. 2020

IEEE Commun. Surv. Tutorials

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201

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Secure and Private Smart Grid: The SPEAR Architecture

Radoglou-Grammatikis

Sarigiannidis

Iturbe

et al. 2020

2020 6th IEEE Conference on Network Softwarization (NetSoft)

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Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is an integral part of Critical Infrastructures (CIs), bringing both significant pros and cons. Focusing our attention on the energy sector, ICT converts the conventional electrical grid into a new paradigm called Smart Grid (SG), providing crucial benefits such as pervasive control, better utilisation of the existing resources, self-healing, etc. However, in parallel, ICT increases the attack surface of this domain, generating new potential cyberthreats. In this paper, we present the Secure and PrivatE smArt gRid (SPEAR) architecture which constitutes an overall solution aiming at protecting SG, by enhancing situational awareness, detecting timely cyberattacks, collecting appropriate forensic evidence and providing an anonymous cybersecurity information-sharing mechanism. Operational characteristics and technical specifications details are analysed for each component, while also the communication interfaces among them are described in detail.

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