Addressing the Cybersecurity Challenges of Electrical Power Systems of the Future

Electrical Power Systems (EPSs) are among the most prominent critical infrastructures of our digital society. Assets, systems and networks of most other critical infrastructure sectors depend heavily on EPSs and would fail in the event of persistent electricity supply problems. This should make EPSs attractive targets for cyberattacks, so it is somewhat surprising that few large-scale successful cyberattacks on the electricity sector have been reported so far.EPSs structures are undergoing deep changes that will accelerate over the next years. A convergence of environmental concerns and technological evolution is leading to the widespread use of distributed renewable microgeneration, electric vehicles, distributed energy storage, Internet of Things, smart grids and software-defined operating devices. These game-changing innovations are reshaping EPSs. The previously well-ordered computational environment where a limited number of agents interacted in predictable ways will gradually receive new layers of agents, where thousands or even millions of them will buy or sell services in a kind of giant open market. The search for individual advantages or profits rather than overall system welfare will guide the actions of these new participants.This work examines the traditional structure of EPSs from a cybersecurity point of view as well as foreseeable changes. It will also look at associated risks and discuss possible approaches to mitigate them.