Addressing the cybersecurity vulnerabilities of advanced nanogrids: A practical framework

The rapid deployment of advanced nanogrids which has enabled utility customers to become energy suppliers, the so-called prosumers with power generation capabilities based on distributed energy resources, has raised issues concerning cybersecurity. The use of the internet of things (IoT) as an enabling technology, along with the bidirectional power flow which demands a bidirectional flow of information between the prosumers and the utility, have paved the way to smarter and more efficient nanogrids, hence the name “advanced nanogrid”. Despite the many advantages of this approach, it makes nanogrids subject to cyber-attacks, providing cybercriminals with the possibility of exploiting nanogrid vulnerabilities as never before. This clearly has an economic and physical impact on the nanogrid operation. In this context, this paper aims to develop a framework to identify assets, assess threats, quantify risks and implement protection mechanisms in future nanogrid developments. The effectiveness of the framework is demonstrated through a cybersecurity analysis of an experimental testbed of an advanced nanogrid based on a photovoltaic (PV) system and controllable loads. The nanogrid includes a blockchain-based energy purchase/sale system, as well as a weather station that sends climatic measurements through a particular communication protocol. This data is used to provide forecasts for making generation/consumption offers. Finally, a cost-benefit analysis has been carried out in which a systematic assessment of the protection mechanisms is proposed, so that a trade-off between the costs of implementing security mechanisms and the losses resulting from unwanted intrusions, can be achieved.