Bob Lockhart, Pike senior analyst and author of the white paper, observed: “Utility cyber security is in a state of near chaos. After years of vendors selling point solutions, utilities investing in compliance minimums rather than full security, and attackers having nearly free rein, the attackers clearly have the upper hand. Many attacks simply cannot be defended. That said, Pike Research has observed a dawning awareness by utilities during the past 18 months of the importance of securing smart grids with architecturally sound solutions.”
The white paper assesses seven key challenges that will be prominent issues in the utility cybersecurity market in 2012 and beyond, as the industry deals with increased uncertainty associated with smart grid enhancements in combination with external threats.
The seven challenges are cybersecurity for regional deployments, industrial control system security, need for clarity in addressing cybersecurity threats, lack of cybersecurity standards, aging infrastructure, system-wide cybersecurity implementation, and new cybersecurity technologies.
Lockhart concluded that the utility cybersecurity market will be characterized by a race to gain the upper hand against the attackers, while at the same time strong competitors attempt to outdo each other.