The Department of Energy (DOE) has unveiled three research programs aimed at ensuring the security of U.S. energy infrastructure against threats such as adversarial cyber attacks and natural hazards.
DOE said Thursday that its Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security and Emergency Response (CESER) is funding efforts to expand its portfolio of research programs to include geomagnetic and electromagnetic interference prevention and cybersecurity testing for critical software and hardware.
CESER partnered with Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories for the Cyber Testing for Resilient Industrial Control System effort focused on assessing system vulnerabilities and evaluating digital cybersecurity tools through analytics.
The office’s Cybersecurity for Energy Delivery Systems division is also looking into partnering with academic and industry entities on security-focused projects involving cyber and physical infrastructure.
Jennifer Granholm, secretary of DOE, said the projects are meant to mitigate emerging threats from foreign actors, hackers and natural catastrophes while addressing the Biden administration’s clean energy initiatives.
DOE noted that it is also continuing efforts under nine projects focused on electromagnetic pulse and geomagnetic disturbance phenomena.