An EU-funded project is developing new tools and methods for assessing the resilience of smart critical infrastructures (SCIs) like water and energy and their interdependencies and vulnerabilities.
Today, both public and private operators are integrating digital technologies into Europe's critical infrastructures, including the electrical grid and utility and financial networks.
The EU-funded SMARTRESILIENCE project aims to develop new tools and methods for assessing SCIs vulnerabilities, in particular their resilience to attacks or failures. The project is considering a broad variety of issues relevant to SCI resilience. These include human factors, security, geopolitics and socio-economic factors. Key issues addressed include:
- Will these smart critical infrastructures (SCIs) be “smartly resilient” when exposed to extreme threats, such as extreme weather disasters or terrorist attacks?
- If making existing infrastructure “smarter” is achieved by making it more complex, would it also make it more vulnerable?
- How is the resilience of an SCI (e.g. as its ability to anticipate, prepare for, adapt and withstand, respond to, and recover) affected when exposed to extreme threats?
More complex and extended smart networks become more vulnerable to cyber-attacks or other failures
For operators of SCIs, the integration of digital technologies enables more efficient management and resource utilisation. More and more homes, businesses and government facilities are being connected digitally to SCIs, in the roll-out of the first wave of connected smart homes, buildings and cities.
As smart networks become more complex and extended, they also become more vulnerable to cyber-attacks or other failures. Protecting and securing them requires primarily understanding the actual extent and nature of their vulnerabilities.
SMARTRESILIENCE begins with the identification of suitable SCI resilience indicators, including those identified by analysing 'big data'. The project team is developing a new resilience-assessment methodology, as well as an IT-based, user-friendly 'SCI dashboard' tool.
The tools are being trialled in eight different European countries in a series of studies involving real water, energy, health, and transportation infrastructure. The combined results are being used to model a complete, virtual, smart city which is helping researchers understand how a wider network of linked SCIs would cope with an attack or general failure.
This will help protect against attacks or other catastrophic failure that could ultimately harm citizens.
The UK is currently one of the partners in the € 4.9 million SMARTRESILIENCE project, which started in May 2016 and is due to complete in April 2019. The City of Edinburgh Council is a project participant.
Click here to access the SMARTRESILIENCE website
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