Electric grid Fully compromised

[Manonthestreet]

This is not good.....dont think shutting it off is the biggest danger either. We may need some draconian laws regarding employees and their net habits for the good of the nation. Power cos cant get on top of this Feds need to step in.
Hackers Gain Direct Access to US Power Grid Controls
In more than 20 cases, Symantec says the hackers successfully gained access to the target companies’ networks. And at a handful of US power firms and at least one company in Turkey—none of which Symantec will name—their forensic analysis found that the hackers obtained what they call operational access: control of the interfaces power company engineers use to send actual commands to equipment like circuit breakers, giving them the ability to stop the flow of electricity into US homes and businesses.

 

[cnelsen]

That is a huge problem. If the electricity ever goes out for a week, we're extinct.

 

[RodISHI]

That is a huge problem. If the electricity ever goes out for a week, we're extinct.

We lived for well over a year without electric as we tried to fight the bank and court fraud here. Most people can learn to adapt when no other choice is available.

 

[Damaged Eagle]

Each and every station should be self contained, no internet control, and it should take a two person manual manipulation at a secure station to turn power on, off, to switch it to an alternate line, etc...

But then I only worked with and in security for about thirty years so what would I know.

*****SMILE*****

 

[Old Rocks]

Well, for that, you are going to have to hire a lot more people, and raise the electrical rates to pay for that. Also, in case of a Carrington event, you probably won't have time to shut down the substations in order to protect them.

For the individual, the solar systems are relatively cheap today, and one can DIY a 50 kw/hr battery for under 10K.

 

[Dale Smith]

Well, for that, you are going to have to hire a lot more people, and raise the electrical rates to pay for that. Also, in case of a Carrington event, you probably won't have time to shut down the substations in order to protect them.

For the individual, the solar systems are relatively cheap today, and one can DIY a 50 kw/hr battery for under 10K.

I am utterly stunned that you even know what the "Carrington Event" is but the fact of the matter is that the electrical grid and the technology to prevent it's shut down has been ignored purposely by the money powers that run USA.INC.

You can bet that their deep underground military bases do not run on an "electrical grid" but instead alternative energy sources that Nikola Tesla wanted all to have.

 

[HenryBHough]

If the grid went down so would the internet.

Now, somebody, let's hear the downside to THAT!

 

[waltky]

Russian hacking operation failed to knock out grid...

U.S. says Russian hack did not compromise power grid, plants
Mar 16, 2018 | WASHINGTON — A Russian government hacking operation aimed at the U.S. power grid did not compromise operations at any of the nation’s power plants, federal regulators and the industry said Friday.

Corporate networks at some of the 99 nuclear power plants licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission were affected by the 2017 hack aimed at the energy grid and other infrastructure, but no safety, security or emergency preparedness functions were impacted, the NRC said in a statement. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission also said the incident had no operational impacts on interstate transmission of electricity. Even so, government and industry leaders said the attacks underscored the increased threat of electronic and computer-based attacks on a range of infrastructure. Energy Secretary Rick Perry said the prolonged cyberattack “demonstrates exactly why” he is creating an Office of Cyber Security and Emergency Response. The new office will consolidate and strengthen efforts to “combat the growing nefarious cyber threats we face,” Perry said, adding that his department worked closely with other federal agencies and energy providers to help ensure that hacking attempts “failed or were stopped.”

The Trump administration accused Moscow on Thursday of an elaborate plot to penetrate America’s electric grid, factories, water supply and even air travel through cyber hacking. U.S. national security officials said the FBI, Department of Homeland Security and intelligence agencies determined Russian intelligence and others were behind a broad range of cyberattacks starting more than a year ago. Russian hackers infiltrated the networks that run the basic services Americans rely on each day: nuclear power, water and manufacturing plants. U.S. officials said the hackers chose their targets methodically, obtained access to computer systems, conducted “network reconnaissance” and then attempted to cover their tracks by deleting evidence of the intrusions. The operation resorted to various methods — including a kind of cyberattack known as spear-phishing — to try to compromise legitimate user accounts, gather user credentials, and target industrial control systems and their networks, officials said. The U.S. government has helped the industries expel the Russians from all systems known to have been penetrated, but additional breaches could be discovered, officials said.

A Russian government hacking operation aimed at the U.S. power grid did not compromise operations at any of the nation's power plants, federal regulators and the industry said Friday.​

The Nuclear Energy Institute, an industry lobbying group, said the Russian hacking campaign targeting U.S. infrastructure “demonstrated that America’s nuclear plants can withstand a nation-state sponsored attack.” U.S. nuclear plants are designed as operational “islands” that are not connected to the internet and other networks. Nuclear power provides about 20 percent of the nation’s electricity. The Edison Electric Institute, which represents investor-owned electric companies that provide electricity for about 220 million Americans, said the government informed energy grid operators last year of a threat targeting them. “While this incident did not have operational impacts, we have worked across the sector and with government partners to ensure the ongoing protection of the grid from this specific threat and from all cyber and physical security risks,” said Scott Aaronson, the group’s vice president of security and preparedness. Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington state, the top Democrat on the Senate Energy Committee, criticized the “belated response” by the Trump administration to Russian cyber threats and urged “a robust and aggressive strategy to protect our critical infrastructure.”

Calling cyber security “an issue that keeps me up at night,” Cantwell said the grid and its infrastructure are “under attack from the Russians and other foreign actors. If we don’t make the necessary investments … our enemies could succeed in causing a blackout that harms our economy.” The accusations that Russia was behind the cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure came as the Trump administration targeted Russians with sanctions for alleged election meddling for the first time since President Donald Trump took office. The list of Russians being punished includes all 13 indicted last month by special counsel Robert Mueller, a tacit acknowledgement by the administration that at least some of Mueller’s Russia-related probe has merit. Trump has repeatedly sought to discredit Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the presidential election, but the sanctions appeared to rely on the special counsel’s legal conclusions in deciding who should be named. The sanctions freeze any assets the individuals may have in U.S. jurisdictions and bar Americans from doing business with them.

U.S. says Russian hack did not compromise power grid, plants

 

[waltky]

Russian Hackers Shift Focus to U.S. Power Grid...

Russian Hackers Appear to Shift Focus to U.S. Power Grid
July 27, 2018 | WASHINGTON — State-sponsored Russian hackers appear far more interested this year in demonstrating that they can disrupt the American electric utility grid than the midterm elections, according to United States intelligence officials and technology company executives.

Despite attempts to infiltrate the online accounts of two Senate Democrats up for re-election, intelligence officials said they have seen little activity by Russian military hackers aimed at either major American political figures or state voter registration systems. By comparison, according to intelligence officials and executives of the companies that oversee the world’s computer networks, there is surprisingly far more effort directed at implanting malware in the electrical grid. The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence findings, but their conclusions were confirmed by several executives of technology and technology security firms. This week, the Department of Homeland Security reported that over the last year, Russia’s military intelligence agency had infiltrated the control rooms of power plants across the United States. In theory, that could enable it to take control of parts of the grid by remote control.

While the department cited “hundreds of victims” of the attacks, far more than they had previously acknowledged, there is no evidence that the hackers tried to take over the plants, as Russian actors did in Ukraine in 2015 and 2016. In interviews, American intelligence officials said that the department had understated the scope of the threat. So far the White House has said little about the intrusions other than raise the fear of such breaches to maintain old coal plants in case they are needed to recover from a major attack.

Russian military hackers appear to have directed their efforts at implanting malware in the electrical grid, intelligence officials and executives of the companies that oversee the world’s computer networks say.​

On Friday, President Trump was briefed on government efforts to protect the coming midterm elections from what a White House statement described as “malign foreign actors.” It said it was giving cybersecurity support to state and local governments to protect their election systems. “The president has made it clear that his administration will not tolerate foreign interference in our elections from any nation state to other malicious actors,” the statement said.

It is possible that Russian hackers are holding their fire until closer to Election Day in November. Given the indictments this month of 12 Russian military officers who are accused of American election interference, the agency once known as the G.R.U. may be all too aware it is being closely watched by the National Security Agency and other American intelligence services. But that has not completely deterred Russia’s intelligence agencies from targeting politicians. Microsoft announced at a security conference last week that it stopped an attack last fall aimed at congressional staff offices. While the company did not identify who was targeted, Senator Claire McCaskill, Democrat of Missouri, who faces a tight race for re-election, said on Thursday night that her office had been struck in what she called an unsuccessful attack.

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