Security of Wide-Area Monitoring, Protection, and Control (WAMPAC) Systems of the Smart Grid: A Survey on Challenges and Opportunities

The evolution of power generation systems, along with their related increase in complexity, led to the critical necessity of Wide-Area Monitoring, Protection, and Control (WAMPAC) systems in today’s smart grid. Recent developments in smart measurement devices coupled with data communication technologies allow for significant improvements in power systems’ reliability, efficiency, and security. These technological advancements make WAMPAC systems of significant practical interest. However, the geographically distributed nature of such systems increases the potential attack surface and the risk of critical vulnerabilities. Thus, it is of paramount importance to identify the related threats and vulnerabilities as well as the prominent solutions relevant to WAMPAC systems. Consequently, this paper aims to provide a comprehensive review of WAMPAC security aspects along with the state-of-the-art research initiatives addressing such aspects. Specifically, this paper provides critical taxonomies of the cyber-security scope of WAMPAC that guide the accompanying survey of the recent studies on the WAMPAC security domain. As such, this article aims to pave the way for prospective researchers to pursue further studies in areas that require in-depth investigation into the security, reliability, and efficiency of WAMPAC as the backbone of smart grids.

I. Introduction

The primary objective of power systems, as one of the vital energy infrastructures of the modern age, is to generate electricity for secure, reliable, efficient, and cost-effective delivery to domestic and industrial consumers. Generally speaking, power grids are composed of three principal subsystems, i.e., generation, transmission, and distribution. The generation units, such as synchronous machines and Renewable Energy Sources (RESs), produce energy, while the transmission system transfers the produced energy to the consumption areas. Finally, the distribution system supplies the consumer loads with the transferred energy. Transmission is a crucial part of such an integrated energy transfer system due to its complexity and geographically distributed nature [1]. It is, therefore, of paramount importance to monitor in real-time the transmission subsystem, aiming toward the optimal satisfaction of all the underlying technical requirements of the power system [2]. Grid monitoring modules, implemented within the transmission subsystem, represent significantly valuable data sources to assist in making necessary, optimal, and appropriate protection and control decisions [3], [4]. Traditionally, Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) communication networks [2] are used by Power System Operators (PSOs) to gather and store measurements to be utilized for grid monitoring, control, and protection purposes.