Demand response is one of key smart grid applications that aims to reduce power generation at peak hours and maintain a balance between supply and demand. With the support of communication networks, energy consumers can become active actors in the energy management process by adjusting or rescheduling their electricity usage during peak hours based on utilities pricing incentives. Nonetheless, the integration of communication networks expose the smart grid to cyber-attacks. In this paper, we developed a smart grid simulation test-bed and designed evaluation scenarios. By leveraging the capabilities of Matlab and ns-3 simulation tools, we conducted a simulation study to evaluate the impact of cyber-attacks on demand response application. Our data shows that cyber-attacks could seriously disrupt smart grid operations, thus confirming the need of secure and resilient communication networks for supporting smart grid operations.

Date Published: 15 May 2015
PDF: 10 pages
Proc. SPIE 9458, Cyber Sensing 2015, 945808 (15 May 2015); doi: 10.1117/12.2177396

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 9458:
Cyber Sensing 2015
Igor V. Ternovskiy; Peter Chin, Editor(s)