Towards a secure Frequency Monitoring NETwork (FNET) system

Reactive and real-time wide area monitoring systems (WAMS), such as the Frequency Monitoring NETwork (FNET) developed at Virginia Tech, allow for the gathering of frequency data throughout the entire power grid. FNET uses the Internet as a communication medium between its system components and therefore raises security concerns involving cyber-related issues. Since security is a key objective in the smart grid project, these concerns must be addressed. In this paper, we analyze vulnerabilities associated with the current FNET architecture to propose a three layered Defense in Depth strategy to better secure FNET from its current threats.