Electricity Grid in U.S. Penetrated by Spies

Wall Street Journal ^ | April 8, 2009 | SIOBHAN GORMAN

[Snoopers-868th]

WASHINGTON -- Cyberspies have penetrated the U.S. electrical grid and left behind software programs that could be used to disrupt the system, according to current and former national-security officials.

The spies came from China, Russia and other countries, these officials said, and were believed to be on a mission to navigate the U.S. electrical system and its controls. The intruders haven't sought to damage the power grid or other key infrastructure, but officials warned they could try during a crisis or war.

[mojitojoe]

Last week, Senate Democrats introduced a proposal that would require all critical infrastructure companies to meet new cybersecurity standards and grant the president emergency powers over control of the grid systems and other infrastructure.
________________
go for it obummer. Wonder who will have the advantage in the dark?

[cva66snipe]

I wonder how true this is. I can’t imagine such systems would be hooked up to the Internet for any reason. Of course, people who work for these companies could be in a position to breach security...

The grids are controlled by data circuits which isn't quite the same thing. But communication that travels on wire or air is hackable. The only question left would be how easy it would be to do so. For what's it's worth many utilities now can have an on call employee manually reset sub station switches after hours at their home via computer link up.

[PA Engineer]

For some technical background on SCADA.

[Snoopers-868th]

I am on cable. What is troock?

[teenyelliott]

Very good point. I wonder which side is better prepared to handle a crisis? Can you say...New Orleans???

Thank you, you just made me feel better.

[HiTech RedNeck]

It’s who the smart grids can listen to.

Just last night I was reading in some music equipment catalog about devices intended to use “white space” (spectrum freed up by changing over from old analog TV to the new digital stuff). They said, no problem, you can put entries into a public FCC database to reserve a piece of spectrum for a given time. I was thinkin’, hoo boy won’t THAT be easy to spam and DOS! Especially when gummit public safety communications are supposed to amicably “share” this.

[HiTech RedNeck]

As in pickup troock. That’s how they say truck in Oklahoma

[Snoopers-868th]

hahahahahahahah Note to self: Read screen names.

[Brad’s Gramma]

How handy.......

Such timing.....

[Brad’s Gramma]

bttt

[HiTech RedNeck]

But fortunately we can’t do anything because that would dis the Chinese and Russians.

[Brad’s Gramma]

And the Kenyan...

[HiTech RedNeck]

Hey, don’t we have any hackers who could pwn the Chicoms and Rooskies right back?

[Brad’s Gramma]

You’re asking a GRANDMOTHER?

Eeeeeeeek!

[Arizona Carolyn]

I’m certain Janet Napolitano will show them the back way into all the plants and come up with some silly excuse for their mahem when it’s over.

[timestax]

THIS just in on the wire.......president obama will immediately place an embargo on all DIET-PEPSI from entering China and Russia as a protest against the Electrical Grid spying!

[pnh102]

If so, I would suspect that computers is how they control them.

This type of control can be done without using the public internet. All it takes is the use of a private network which as no internet connectivity. Infiltrating the latter would be far more difficult than getting in through the internet.

I think that if these critical systems were indeed connected to the internet in some way, a hack would have been found and some script kiddie would have brought down the entire US power grid just for kicks.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Never too late to learn

[G8 Diplomat]

The spies came from China, Russia

Anyone who thinks the Cold War is over--pull your head out of the sand!

[HiTech RedNeck]

Semi-publicly connected, perhaps through dial up modems.

Also how many people have passwords to these systems on their laptop computers? Add the Spyware du Jour and we have....