Vulnerabilities of Line Current Differential Relays to Cyber-Attacks

Being fast and highly reliable under different conditions, line current differential relays (LCDRs) are high-end protective devices that are deployed to protect DC and critical AC lines. LCDRs, however, are vulnerable to cyber attacks, since this type of relay is dependent on communication infrastructure and the global positioning system (GPS). This susceptibility may enable attackers to fool LCDRs into issuing unwarranted trip signals, and potentially to create an instability if several attacks are coordinated. Through case-studies, this paper shows how coordinated attacks against LCDRs in DC and AC networks can create a voltage collapse in the system. The case-studies are carried on the IEEE 14-bus AC network, as well as on a DC microgrid.

[1]  Aditya Ashok,et al.  Cyber-Physical Attack-Resilient Wide-Area Monitoring, Protection, and Control for the Power Grid , 2017, Proceedings of the IEEE.

[2]  T. Humphreys,et al.  Assessing the Spoofing Threat: Development of a Portable GPS Civilian Spoofer , 2008 .

[3]  Ehab F. El-Saadany,et al.  Ultra-High-Speed Traveling-Wave-Based Protection Scheme for Medium-Voltage DC Microgrids , 2019, IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid.

[4]  Alvaro Luna,et al.  Centralized Protection Strategy for Medium Voltage DC Microgrids , 2017, IEEE Transactions on Power Delivery.

[5]  Bogdan Z. Kasztenny,et al.  Tutorial on operating characteristics of microprocessor-based multiterminal line current differential relays , 2013 .

[6]  Béla Genge,et al.  A system dynamics approach for assessing the impact of cyber attacks on critical infrastructures , 2015, Int. J. Crit. Infrastructure Prot..

[7]  Chen Yuan,et al.  Protection Strategies for Medium-Voltage Direct-Current Microgrid at a Remote Area Mine Site , 2015, IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications.

[8]  Husheng Li,et al.  Time Synchronization Attack in Smart Grid: Impact and Analysis , 2013, IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid.

[9]  Juergen Holbach,et al.  Secure data communication for line differential relays , 2009, 2009 Power Systems Conference.

[10]  H. H. Happ,et al.  Power System Control and Stability , 1979, IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics.

[11]  Jean-Marc Thiriet,et al.  A Test bed dedicated to the Study of Vulnerabilities in IEC 61850 Power Utility Automation Networks , 2016, 2016 IEEE 21st International Conference on Emerging Technologies and Factory Automation (ETFA).

[12]  Graeme M. Burt,et al.  High-Speed Differential Protection for Smart DC Distribution Systems , 2014, IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid.

[13]  Thoshitha T. Gamage,et al.  Security Implications of Transport Layer Protocols in Power Grid Synchrophasor Data Communication , 2016, IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid.

[14]  Chunjie Zhou,et al.  Anomaly Detection Based on Zone Partition for Security Protection of Industrial Cyber-Physical Systems , 2018, IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics.

[15]  P. Crolla,et al.  Optimizing the Roles of Unit and Non-unit Protection Methods Within DC Microgrids , 2012, IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid.

[16]  Sukumar Kamalasadan,et al.  A Novel Self-Evolving Intelligent Multiagent Framework for Power System Control and Protection , 2014, IEEE Systems Journal.

[17]  T. Yong,et al.  Optimal power flow formulation in market of retail wheeling , 1999, IEEE Power Engineering Society. 1999 Winter Meeting (Cat. No.99CH36233).

[18]  Jess Smith,et al.  Ukraine Cyber-Induced Power Outage , 2017 .

[19]  Ehab F. El-Saadany,et al.  Development of a Cyber-Resilient Line Current Differential Relay , 2019, IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics.

[20]  Mohammad Shahidehpour,et al.  Power System Risk Assessment in Cyber Attacks Considering the Role of Protection Systems , 2017, IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid.

[21]  Nadarajah Mithulananthan,et al.  Comparison of PSS, SVC, and STATCOM controllers for damping power system oscillations , 2003 .

[22]  Chai Jiwen,et al.  Cyber security vulnerability assessment for Smart substations , 2016, 2016 IEEE PES Asia-Pacific Power and Energy Engineering Conference (APPEEC).

[23]  V. Skendzic,et al.  Cyber Security Issues for Protective Relays; C1 Working Group Members of Power System Relaying Committee , 2007, 2007 IEEE Power Engineering Society General Meeting.

[24]  Normann Fischer,et al.  Modern line current differential protection solutions , 2010, 2010 63rd Annual Conference for Protective Relay Engineers.

[25]  Joe H. Chow,et al.  Classification and Detection of PMU Data Manipulation Attacks Using Transmission Line Parameters , 2018, IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid.

[26]  Chang Liu,et al.  Remedial Pilot Main Protection Scheme for Transmission Line Independent of Data Synchronism , 2019, IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid.

[27]  Cristina Alcaraz,et al.  Cyber Stealth Attacks in Critical Information Infrastructures , 2018, IEEE Systems Journal.