Pbnc 2012 Challenges of Cyber Security for Nuclear Power Plants

Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs) become one of the most important infrastructures in providing efficient and non-interrupted electricity in a country using radioactive elements due to global warming and shortage of fossil resources. To provide the higher reliability and better performance with additional diagnostic capabilities in operating NPPs, digital Instrumentation and Control (I&C) systems have been introduced to replace the analog I&C system. However, the digitalized I&C systems bring us new vulnerabilities and threats over the cyber space. In this paper, we discus that the trends of cyber security for legacy IT system and its countermeasure have been developed for last three decades from the security point of view. We found that the nuclear industry has an inherently conservative approach to safety and substantial effort is required to provide the necessary evidence and analysis to assure that digital I&C systems can be used in safety-critical and safety-related applications. NPP I&C systems are generally isolated from external communication systems. This cannot provide 100% cyber attack–free operation for NPP lessoned from an attack using stuxnet. Experience gained from cyber security in other sensitive fields, such as the military, national security, banking, and air-traffic control, etc. is valuable both for improving cyber security at NPPs with digital I&C systems and for demonstrating that cyber defenses can consistently stay ahead of cyber attacks. But as with safety and other areas of security, cyber security is an area where no-one can rest on his laurels. Continued success requires continuous vigilance and continuous improvement.