Can ISIS Hack the Electric Grid?
hile black-clad ISIS terrorists may seem far away, security experts here at home are sounding warning bells that ISIS-sponsored hackers are probing the nation’s electric grid. FBI experts say the attempts haven’t had much success, but Congress is concerned enough to hold hearings on the topic this morning in Washington.
“Strong intent. Thankfully, low capability,” John Riggi, a section chief at the FBI’s cyber division, told a conference of utility cybersecurity experts last week. “But the concern is that they’ll buy that capability.”
Could Our Power Grid Ever Fail?
The FBI worries that terrorists can purchase black market malware or destructive software from the same organized crime groups that commit financial fraud by stealing credit cards or bank account information.
American energy infrastructure, including power plants, transmission and distribution lines, oil and gas pipelines, and transformers and substations remain vulnerable to cyber attack, according to a report by the House Science Committee last month.
