August 14, 2015
The Department of Homeland Security is creating a new committee dedicated to boosting digital defenses for utilities.
In a notice published in Friday’s Federal Register, the department announced that the Homeland Security Advisory Council will form a cybersecurity subcommittee as part of efforts to prevent a deadly attack on power plants or the electric grid that some have deemed a “cyber Pearl Harbor.”
Experts say such critical infrastructure sites are increasingly at risk as electric grids get “smarter.”National Security Agency Director Michael Rogers told lawmakers last fall that China and “one or two” other countries would be able to shut down portions of critical U.S. infrastructure with a cyberattack. Researchers suspect Iran to be on that list.