How Secure is the Israeli Electrical Grid?

How Secure is the Israeli Electrical Grid?

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Israeli experts are studying the results of an exercise that pointed to the vulnerability of the electrical grid

8848686_m featureThe North American Electric Reliability corporation (NERC) reported that its recent GridEx II exercise has highlighted the fact that nearly all the utilities which took part in the two-day drill last November – a drill aiming to test the preparedness of the U.S. power grid to withstand cyber and physical attacks – admitted that their planning for such attacks was insufficient.

More than 2,000 companies and organizations from across the United States, Canada, and Mexico participated in the exercise, and all said the drill showed them their vulnerabilities and how important communication among utilities was if such an attack occurred.

The New York Times reports that the NERC report offered few details. The organizers said it would make little sense to publicize the grid’s shortcomings beyond the organizations involved with it on a daily basis, and that NERC was communicating with the utilities individually about their performances.

iHLS – Israel Homeland Security

The drill consisted of 12-hour simulated attacks during the first day, followed by twelve hours of a “tabletop exercise” on the second day, aiming to explore the point at which the federal government should intervene during a coordinated attack on the grid.

Gridex II was more than twice the size of the first exercise, conducted two years ago. The Times notes that there were many more participants this time, too, reflecting the growing anxiety about the vulnerability of the grid. The next exercise will be held next year.