Cyber Security of Electric Power Infrastructure

Critical infrastructures are defined as systems whose incapacity or destruction would have a debilitating impact on the national security and the economic and social welfare of a nation. It includes such infrastructures like telecommunications, electric power, gas and oil, banking and finance, transportation, water supply, and government and emergency services.

Towards the end of the 20 th century electric power infrastructure emerged as one of the most critical infrastructure in the sense that all other critical and vital infrastructures depend on reliable electricity supply. It is also considered as one of the most vulnerable to physical and cyber attack. Present-day electric power systems, which are physical part of electric power infrastructure, are complex and technologically advanced systems. Assuring cyber security of these systems it is difficult interdisciplinary task. The task is difficult because of great complexity of these systems. But to some extend it is also difficult because risk analysis in these systems is based on concepts that are normally not known in others sectors of industry and in information technology and can be difficult to understand for specialists from these fields who are not familiar with electric power systems.

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