Measurement protection to prevent cyber–physical attacks against power system State Estimation

Although state estimation using a bad data detector (BDD) is a key procedure employed in power systems, the detector is vulnerable to false data injection attacks (FDIAs). Substantial deep learning methods have been proposed to detect such attacks. However, deep neural networks are susceptible to adversarial attacks or adversarial examples, where slight changes in inputs may lead to sharp changes in the corresponding outputs in even well-trained networks. This article introduces the joint adversarial example and FDIAs (AFDIAs) to explore various attack scenarios for state estimation in power systems. Considering that perturbations added directly to measurements are likely to be detected by BDDs, our proposed method of adding perturbations to state variables can guarantee that the attack is stealthy to BDDs. Then, malicious data that are stealthy to both BDDs and deep learning-based detectors can be generated. Theoretical and experimental results show that our proposed state-perturbation-based AFDIA method (S-AFDIA) can carry out attacks stealthy to both conventional BDDs and deep learning-based detectors, while our proposed measurement-perturbation-based adversarial FDIA method (M-AFDIA) succeeds if only deep learning-based detectors are used. The comparative experiments show that our proposed methods provide better performance than state-of-the-art methods. Besides, the ultimate effect of attacks can also be optimized using the proposed joint attack methods.

False data injection (FDI) attacks have recently been introduced as an important class of cyber-attacks against power system state estimation. Utilizing vulnerabilities in information systems, attackers can inject well-constructed false data and stealthily misguide results of state estimation. However, only measurements, such as power flows and bus injections, are coordinately modified in FDI attacks, which may result in a larger number of modified measurements in constructing such attacks. In this article, we propose a network parameter coordinated false data injection (NP-FDI) attack to reduce the number of attacked measurements, where expected changes of system states and modifications of network parameters are well coordinated. Analysis of minimal attack set at a single line gives feasible conditions in reducing the number of attacked measurements. A sparse attack strategy is designed to obtain the minimal attack set of the whole grid, which can also be applied to cases with incomplete topology information. An extension to NP-FDI attacks with incomplete line impedance is presented, where the required line impedance can be estimated from local measurements adjacent to the targeted branch. Based on simulations in the IEEE 14-bus and IEEE 118-bus test systems, performance of the proposed NP-FDI attacks on sparsity and stealth are evaluated.

ABSTRACTAs a result of the rapid growth of distributed state estimation in modern power systems, power networks are facing increasingly serious security problems, thus requiring the advancement of defense techniques against cyber attacks. This paper is devoted to investigating distributed consensus state estimation with a defense mechanism against false data injection (FDI) attacks for power systems. By introducing a transformation matrix, the local subsystem model associated with the mixed remote terminal unit and phasor measurement unit measurements is constructed. Taking into account historical estimation information on state variables without being attacked, a defense mechanism constructed by secure historical estimation value is presented to protect the estimator against FDI attacks while maintaining accuracy in estimation. Then a distributed Kalman consensus filter (DKCF) is hosted to estimate the dynamic states of power systems under FDI attack protector. Considering scalability in large‐scale power systems, a suboptimal DKCF with the designed protector is developed. By means of the Lyapunov‐based approach, a sufficient condition is provided to ensure that the proposed estimator equipped with the defense mechanism is stable. Finally, the proposed distributed state estimation algorithms are validated on an IEEE benchmark 14‐bus power system.

For target tracking in radar network, any anomaly in a part of the system can quickly spread over the network and lead to tracking failures. False data injection (FDI) attacks can damage the state estimation mechanism by modifying the radar measurements with unknown and time-varying attack variables, therefore making traditional filters inapplicable. To tackle this problem, we propose a novel consensus-based distributed state estimation (DSE) method for target tracking with FDI attacks, which is effective even when all radars are under FDI attacks. First, a real-time residual-based detector is introduced to the DSE framework, which can effectively detect FDI attacks by analyzing the statistical properties of the residual. Secondly, a simple yet effective attack parameter estimation method is proposed to provide attack parameter estimation based on a pseudo-measurement equation, which has the advantage of decoupled estimation of state and attack parameters compared with augmented state filters. Finally, for timely attack mitigation and global consistency achievement, a novel hybrid consensus method is proposed which can compensate for the estimation error caused by FDI attacks and provide estimation accuracy improvement. The simulation results show that the proposed solution is effective and superior to the traditional DSE method for target tracking in the presence of FDI attacks.

While acquiring precise and intelligent state sensing and control capabilities, the cyber physical power system is constantly exposed to the potential cyber-attack threat. False data injection (FDI) attack attempts to disrupt the normal operation of the power system through the coupling of cyber side and physical side. To deal with the situation that stealthy FDI attack can bypass the bad data detection and thus trigger false commands, a system feature extraction method in state estimation is proposed, and the corresponding FDI attack detection method is presented. Based on the principles of state estimation and stealthy FDI attack, we analyze the impacts of FDI attack on measurement residual. Gaussian fitting method is used to extract the characteristic parameters of residual distribution as the system feature, and attack detection is implemented in a sliding time window by comparison. Simulation results prove that the proposed attack detection method is effectiveness and efficiency.

This paper studies the secure state estimation problem for multi-area power systems with unknown load deviation when the sensor measurements of power systems encounter false data injection (FDI) attacks. By modeling a new state-space model including the variables of load deviation and FDI attack signals, an intermediate observer-based method is developed to simultaneously estimate the load deviation and FDI attacks. Then, the secure state estimator is designed by compensating FDI attacks, while the unknown load deviation in power systems is compensated by its estimated values to eliminate system oscillations as much as possible. Simulations show the effectiveness of the proposed methods.

The process of state estimation is threatened to false data injection attacks and diagnosing such kind of bad-natured attacks has significant impacts on reliable operation of power system. Recent studies show that false data injection attack which is one kind of cyber-attack can bypass conventional methods of bad data detection (chi-square WLSE, maximum residual, Hypothesis testing), introducing dangerous effects on operation of power system state estimation. In this report detection-based methods are discussed to address the limitations of existing methods. One method is Kullback-Leibler Distance (KLD) which calculate the distance between two probability distributions p & q derived from variations of measurements (where, q is the probability distribution of measurements variation from historical data. p is the probability distribution of measurements variation between current measurements and previous measurements). Second method is absolute distance method which also used to calculate distance index. By calculating distance index between two distributions of measurements, injection of false data can be detected. If the distance index is larger compare to previous one then newly received measurements are likely to be manipulated.

Design of False Data Injection Attacks in Cyber-Physical Systems

The work presented in this chapter is an extension of our previous research of bringing together the Cognitive Dynamic System (CDS) and the Smart Grid (SG) by focusing on AC state estimation and Cyber-Attack detection. Under the AC power flow model, state estimation is complex and computationally expensive as it relies on iterative procedures. On the other hand, the False Data Injection (FDI) attacks are a new category of cyber-attacks targeting the SG that can bypass the current bad data detection techniques in the SG. Due to the complexity of the nonlinear system involved, the amount of published works on AC based FDI attacks have been fewer compared to their DC counterpart. Here, we will demonstrate how the entropic state, which is the objective function of the CDS, can be used as a metric to monitor the grid’s health and detect FDI attacks. The CDS, acting as the supervisor of the system, improves the entropic state on a cycle to cycle basis by dynamically optimizing the state estimation process through the reconfiguration of the weights of the sensors in the network. In order to showcase performance of this new structure, computer simulations are carried out on the IEEE 14-bus system for optimal state estimation and FDI attack detection.

The pervasiveness of information and communications technologies as well as intelligent electronic devices leads to an expanded attack surface in smart grids, making it increasingly challenging to withstand the high-profile false data injection (FDI) attacks. In this paper, we propose a Proactive Approach to Mitigate FDI Attacks (PAMA) in smart grids. With PAMA scheme, the critical information - power grid connections and configurations as well as the original measurement data - used for constructing FDI attacks is well protected from leakage or theft, so that FDI attacks are effectively mitigated. Specifically, we transform the state estimation and FDI detection application into a distributed one equipped with converted information from the critical information provided by the control center. In addition, the original measurement data is also protected by using a secure hybrid Paillier cryptosystem. Our PAMA scheme is proved to be secure and effective in mitigating FDI attacks on smart grids. The computational complexity and the communication overhead are evaluated on the standard IEEE 14-bus test system. Keywords <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">__</sup> Smart grids, false data injection (FDI) attack, Paillier cryptosystem, state estimation.

State estimation is a very critical component in smart grid, a typical energy‐based cyber‐physical system. Kalman filter has been widely used in the dynamic state estimation of power systems. Although a large number of research efforts have been made on the robustness and filtering effectiveness, little effort has been conducted on cyber attacks against Kalman filtering. To address this issue, in this paper we systematically compare three representative Kalman filtering techniques and formalize the problem of anomaly detection against false data injection attacks in Kalman filter. On the basis of our modeling results, we investigate five novel attack approaches that can bypass the anomaly detection. To defend against those attacks, we develop two countermeasures: the enhancement of Kalman filtering and the temporal‐based detection algorithm. We conduct extensive performance evaluation and our data validates our theoretical finding well. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

False data injection attacks with complete stealthiness in cyber–physical systems: A self-generated approach

In this paper, we consider false data injection (FDI) attacks with limited information of transmission-line susceptances and new countermeasures in smart grids. First, we prove that the adversary could launch FDI attacks to modify the state variable on a bus or superbus only if he/she knows the susceptance of every transmission line that is incident to that bus or superbus. Based on this observation, we provide a new countermeasure against FDI attacks, i.e., to make the susceptances of n-1 interconnected transmission lines that cover all buses unknown to the adversary (e.g., by proactively perturbing transmission-line susceptances through distributed flexible AC transmission system (D-FACTS) devices), where n is the total number of buses. This new countermeasure can work alone or in conjunction with traditional ones to reduce the number of meter measurements/state variables that are to be secured against FDI attacks. The implementation of FDI attacks with limited susceptance information and the effectiveness of new countermeasures are demonstrated by using an illustrative 4-bus power system and the IEEE 9-bus, 14-bus, 30-bus, 118-bus, and 300-bus test power systems.

The integration of information and communication technologies (ICTs) has provided modern smart grids, such as direct current (DC) microgrids (MGs), with various advantages, e.g., the possibility of large-scale integration of renewable energy sources and complex control schemes. This extensive deployment of ICTs, however, makes DC MGs prone to a variety of cyber threats, e.g., false data injection (FDI) attacks. On this basis, this paper develops online detection and mitigation schemes to counter FDI attacks against DC MGs. Initially, in the offline training of the detection scheme, the density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise (DBSCAN) method is used for extracting prescriptive features of DC MG measurements and clustering them in healthy and under-attack operations under several uncertainties in DC MG operations. These features are used to train an adaptive network-based fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) architecture for the online identification of FDI attacks. Afterward, the trained ANFIS is used to detect FDI attacks and obtain the attack vectors benefiting from the real-time measurements estimated by an optimal state observer. Finally, an adaptive model predictive controller (AMPC) is developed to update the power-sharing commands—and mitigate the FDI attack—using the ANFIS’s obtained attack vectors. The effectiveness of the proposed framework is evaluated for several realistic FDI attack scenarios and different uncertainties. To show the scalability of the proposed detection and mitigation methods, a DC MG with eight converters is also studied in the presence of FDI attacks and uncertainties using real-time simulations.

In the recent years, cyberattacks to smart grids are becoming more frequent. Among the many malicious activities that can be launched against smart grids, the False Data Injection (FDI) attacks have raised significant concerns from both academia and industry. FDI attacks can affect the (internal) state estimation process—critical for smart grid monitoring and control—thus being able to bypass conventional Bad Data Detection (BDD) methods. Hence, prompt detection and precise localisation of FDI attacks are becoming of paramount importance to ensure smart grids security and safety. Several papers recently started to study and analyse this topic from different perspectives and address existing challenges. Data‐driven techniques and mathematical modelling are the major ingredients of the proposed approaches. The primary objective is to provide a systematic review and insights into FDI attacks joint detection and localisation approaches considering that other surveys mainly concentrated on the detection aspects without detailed coverage of localisation aspects. For this purpose, more than 40 major research contributions were selected and inspected, while conducting a detailed analysis of the methodology and objectives in relation to the FDI attacks detection and localisation. Key findings of the identified papers were provided according to different criteria, such as employed FDI attacks localisation techniques, utilised evaluation scenarios, investigated FDI attack types, application scenarios, adopted methodologies and the use of additional data. Finally, open issues and future research directions were discussed.