Security Digest

Prevent North America From Going Dark

Electrical utility site at night with perimeter fence to demonostrate Senstar's ability to protect electrical utility infrastructure from perimeter intrusions

There are over 70,000 electrical substations in the United States. A simultaneous attack on several of these could destabilize the grid and cause widespread blackouts. But even a non-targeted event like vandalism or copper theft could still cause substantial damages, easily reaching into the tens of thousands of dollars (if not much greater when potential liability and service outages are considered).

To prevent costly incidents and meet the National Electrical Reliability Commission’s Critical Infrastructure Protection regulations (NERC CIP-014), electrical utilities need to assess the vulnerability of critical assets like substations, have an independent third-party review the results, and then implement the required physical security upgrades, typically via a phased-in approach.

Perimeter Intrusion Detection Systems (PIDS) can be a key part of an overall physical security plan, offering highly effective, cost-effective protection. For the system to be a success, especially when deployed at remote and unmanned sites, it must meet the following requirements:

  • Reliably detect and deter would-be intruders
  • Avoid complacency by minimizing nuisance alarms
  • Be cost-effective for smaller, remote sites
  • Offer scalable integration options, with support for existing security, communications, and/or SCADA networks

Click here to download an article that looks at how Senstar (specifically FlexZone, FiberPatrol, the Senstar LM100 and Senstar Video Analytics) can directly address these requirements.