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Filters: Author is Arguello, Bryan  [Clear All Filters]
2020-07-06
Castillo, Anya, Arguello, Bryan, Cruz, Gerardo, Swiler, Laura.  2019.  Cyber-Physical Emulation and Optimization of Worst-Case Cyber Attacks on the Power Grid. 2019 Resilience Week (RWS). 1:14–18.

In this paper we report preliminary results from the novel coupling of cyber-physical emulation and interdiction optimization to better understand the impact of a CrashOverride malware attack on a notional electric system. We conduct cyber experiments where CrashOverride issues commands to remote terminal units (RTUs) that are controlling substations within a power control area. We identify worst-case loss of load outcomes with cyber interdiction optimization; the proposed approach is a bilevel formulation that incorporates RTU mappings to controllable loads, transmission lines, and generators in the upper-level (attacker model), and a DC optimal power flow (DCOPF) in the lower-level (defender model). Overall, our preliminary results indicate that the interdiction optimization can guide the design of experiments instead of performing a “full factorial” approach. Likewise, for systems where there are important dependencies between SCADA/ICS controls and power grid operations, the cyber-physical emulations should drive improved parameterization and surrogate models that are applied in scalable optimization techniques.