ELECTRON Project
Published July 30, 2024 | Version v1
Conference paper Open

Development of a Laboratory Testbed for Cybersecurity Evaluation of Distribution Substations Using Open Source Tools

Creators

  • 1. ROR icon Universitatea Națională de Știință și Tehnologie Politehnica București
  • 2. ROR icon Transelectrica (Romania)
  • 3. Electrica SA (Romania)

Description

This paper presents a novel approach to developing a laboratory testbed for cybersecurity testing distribution substations, focusing on the GOOSE communication protocol specified by IEC 61850. The testbed uniquely employs open-source tools to accurately replicate the operational conditions of a real substation, utilizing Intelligent Electronic Devices (IEDs) with a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of 7. This combination ensures high fidelity to real-world applications while maintaining a safe and isolated environment. A significant novelty of this research lies in its ability to use TRL 7- 7-level equipment and integrate diverse open-source tools, enhancing cybersecurity tests' realism and applicability. Substations’ increasing digitization and automation introduce new cybersecurity vulnerabilities that could disrupt power
distribution, underscoring the necessity for robust security measures. The developed testbed offers a vital platform for rigorously testing and improving cybersecurity defences, safe guarding critical infrastructure against evolving threats. This comprehensive approach addresses existing challenges and sets a new standard for future research and development in substation cybersecurity.

Files

ECAI_2024.pdf

Files (2.9 MB)

Name Size Download all
md5:f9edbb52da1dbcabab829cce0f719b1f
2.9 MB Preview Download

Additional details

Related works

Is cited by
Conference paper: 10.1109/ECAI58194.2023.10194166 (DOI)

Funding

European Union
rEsilient and seLf-healed EleCTRical pOwer Nanogrid (ELECTRON) SU-DS04-2018-2020

References

  • G.-C. Seriţan, B.-A. Enache, R. Porumb, D. Balaci, I. Clima, and C.- B. Bărbulescu, "Guidelines for developing a power-grid cybersecurity database in europe," in 2023 15th International Conference on Elec- tronics, Computers and Artificial Intelligence (ECAI), 2023, pp. 1–4.
  • M. Hara and C. Kriger, "Implementation of an IEC 61850-Based Metering Device Using Open-Source Software," Universal Journal of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 17–34, May 2021.
  • Z. Pourmirza and A. Srivastava, "Cybersecurity Analysis for the Communication Protocol in Smart Grids," in 2020 IEEE 8th International Conference on Smart Energy Grid Engineering (SEGE). Oshawa, ON, Canada: IEEE, Aug. 2020, pp. 58–63. [Online]. Available: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9182015/
  • J. W. Konka, C. M. Arthur, F. J. Garcia, and R. C. Atkinson, "Traffic generation of IEC 61850 sampled values," in 2011 IEEE First International Workshop on Smart Grid Modeling and Simulation (SGMS). Brussels, Belgium: IEEE, Oct. 2011, pp. 43–48. [Online]. Available: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/6089025/
  • H. E. Ghadbane, S. Barkat, A. Djerioui, A. Houari, M. Oproescu, and N. Bizon, "Energy management of electric vehicle using a new strategy based on slap swarm optimization and differential flatness control," Scientific Reports, vol. 14, no. 1, p. 3629, 2024.
  • W. Huang, "A practical guide of troubleshooting iec 61850 goose communication," in 2017 70th Annual Conference for Protective Relay Engineers (CPRE), 2017, pp. 1–8.
  • M. M. Roomi, W. S. Ong, S. M. S. Hussain, and D. Mashima, "IEC 61850 Compatible OpenPLC for Cyber Attack Case Studies on Smart Substation Systems," IEEE Access, vol. 10, pp. 9164–9173, 2022. [Online]. Available: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9684382/
  • J. Lozano, K. Koneru, J. H. Castellanos, and A. A. Cardenas, "Timing Analysis of GOOSE in a Real-World Substation," in 2022 IEEE International Conference on Communications, Control, and Computing Technologies for Smart Grids (SmartGridComm). Singapore, Singapore: IEEE, Oct. 2022, pp. 160–165. [Online]. Available: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9961030/
  • A. Bhatt and V. Karthikeyan, "Digital twin framework and its appli- cation for protection functions testing of relays," in 2022 3rd Inter- national Conference on Electronics and Sustainable Communication Systems (ICESC), 2022, pp. 682–687.