Cyberattacks Have Been Targeting the U.S. Power Grid

According to an article in the New York Times published today, hackers have been penetrating computer networks of nuclear power stations and manufacturing plants in the U.S. and other countries. Since May, companies such as Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation, which runs a nuclear power plant in Kansas, have been targeted, according to a report by the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI.

Bloomberg reported today that at least a dozen power plants in the U.S. were targeted, and that the chief suspect is the government of Russia. The New York Times  reported that, according to two people familiar with the investigation, the hackers used techniques similar to “Energetic Bear,” the Russian hacking group that researchers think have attacked the energy sector since at least 2012.

The DHS/FBI joint report did not specify whether the hacks were designed to steal secrets or to cause destruction. John Keeley, a spokesperson for the Nuclear Energy Institute, said in the New York Times that none of the facilities targeted have reported that the attacks affected the security of their operations.

The New York Times article can be found here.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/06/technology/nuclear-plant-hack-report.html

​The Bloomberg article can be found here.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-07-07/russians-are-said-to-be-suspects-in-hacks-involving-nuclear-site

​A New York Times article about last week’s attack on computeres around the world, also thought to be traceable to the Russian government, can be found here.
​https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/07/06/technology/search-for-clues-global-cyberattacks.html?referer=
 
An article from Fortune about multiple cyberattacks on Ukraine's power grid, thought to be the work of the Russian government, can be found here.
http://fortune.com/2017/06/30/ukraine-power-station-cyber-attack/

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