Critical Infrastructure Protection: Actions Needed to Address Significant Cybersecurity Risks Facing the Electric Grid

Citation
General Accounting Office, Critical Infrastructure Protection: Actions Needed to Address Significant Cybersecurity Risks Facing the Electric Grid (GAO-19-332) (Aug. 26, 2019) (full-text).

Overview
The nation's electric grid is becoming more vulnerable to cyberattacks &mdash; particularly those involving industrial control systems that support grid operations. Recent federal assessments indicate that cyberattacks could cause widespread power outages in the United States, but the scale of such outages is uncertain.

The Department of Energy (DOE) plays a key role in helping address cybersecurity risks in each component of the electric grid's infrastructure. However, DOE has not developed plans for electric grid cybersecurity that address the key characteristics needed for a national strategy. The GAO recommends that it do so.