LES to work on cyberattack response during simulated exercise

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — Lincoln Electric System hosted a critical simulation on Tuesday.

The exercise is focused on protecting our electric infrastructure from physical attacks or cyberattacks.

LES said that it is practicing response and recovery and that a big part of that is communication between utility companies and local law enforcement.

The Omaha Public Power District, Nebraska Public Power District and Southwest Power Pool are involved.

LES said it’s dealing with customized scenarios to help learn how to deal with cyberattacks more safely and efficiently. 

The simulation is part of a national exercise called GridEx VII.  It’s the largest grid security exercise in North America.

The goal is to make sure all entities are prepared in case something were to ever happen.

There are several hundred scenarios that are sent to different divisions of LES.

“And then they have to figure out, ‘What do they do about it and how do they interact with other folks with respect to it?” said Kevin Wailes, the CEO of LES.

Sean Runge, director of preparedness and operations at the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency, said it’s not a matter of if one of the scenarios happens in Nebraska – but when.

In the event of an emergency, communication among all the different entities involved – and with the public – is vital but difficult.

“Communications is always a tough thing,” Runge said.

These exercises help find breakdowns in that communication.

The exercise happens every two years, and it’s happening now as cyberattacks are on the rise across the globe.

There was a 38% increase in attacks in 2022, costing trillions of dollars, according to a report published in Security Magazine.

The report says smaller groups are targeting business tools like Slack, Microsoft Teams and Google. 

Hospitals are also vulnerable. The U.S. saw an 86% increase in attacks just last year.

One of those attacks was on the parent company of CHI Health last October. Some patient’s appointments had to be rescheduled or delayed.

The LES exercise continues on Wednesday.