Digitalized and interconnected technology used to set up renewable projects and energy grids have increased the risk and occurrence of cyberattacks, Reuters reports. The energy transition’s use of decentralized, small units — such as wind and solar plants as well as smart meters — connected digitally significantly increases the number of entry points for attacks, director at Germany's Institute for Security and Safety Swantje Westpfahl explained to Reuters.

This became clear on the onset of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine: European energy companies saw the amount of hacker attacks on their operations shoot up since the start of the war in Ukraine last year, the newswire said. Russia launched an average of 10 cyberattacks a day — with the Ukrainian energy sector a priority target — Ukraine's SBU security service told Reuters. Last February, a Russian cyberattack on a Ukrainian satellite communications network knocked out the remote monitoring of more than 5.8k wind turbines of Germany's Enercon, shutting them down completely.

Similar attacks happened in our neck of the woods: Hackers used the Triton virus malware — which MIT Technology Review calls as the world’s most murderous malware — to remotely take over the safety systems of a Saudi petrochemical plant back in 2017 bringing it to a standstill, according to Reuters.

Digital security is being ramped up in response: German utility company EnBW told Reuters it is “expanding its 200-strong cyber security team to protect operations ranging from wind and solar to grids.” Swedish grid operator Cem Gocgoren has roughly quadrupled its cybersecurity team in the last four years in parallel to improving security awareness amongst staff.

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