
NSF Org: |
CNS Division Of Computer and Network Systems |
Recipient: |
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Initial Amendment Date: | March 17, 2015 |
Latest Amendment Date: | March 7, 2019 |
Award Number: | 1446831 |
Award Instrument: | Cooperative Agreement |
Program Manager: |
David Corman
CNS Division Of Computer and Network Systems CSE Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering |
Start Date: | March 1, 2015 |
End Date: | February 29, 2020 (Estimated) |
Total Intended Award Amount: | $998,900.00 |
Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $998,900.00 |
Funds Obligated to Date: |
FY 2016 = $351,303.00 FY 2017 = $309,203.00 |
History of Investigator: |
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Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
1350 BEARDSHEAR HALL AMES IA US 50011-2103 (515)294-5225 |
Sponsor Congressional District: |
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Primary Place of Performance: |
3227 Coover Hall, Iowa State Uni Ames IA US 50011-2021 |
Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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Parent UEI: |
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NSF Program(s): |
CPS-Cyber-Physical Systems, Cybersecurity Innovation, Reimbursable/Reserved Out-year |
Primary Program Source: |
01001516RB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT 01001617DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT 01001617RB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT 01001718DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT 01001718RB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT |
Program Reference Code(s): |
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Program Element Code(s): |
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Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.070 |
ABSTRACT
The electric power grid is a complex cyber-physical system (CPS) that forms the lifeline of modern society. Cybersecurity and resiliency of the power grid is of paramount importance to national security and economic well-being. CPS security testbeds are enabling technologies that provide realistic experimental platforms for the evaluation and validation of security technologies within controlled environments, and they also enable the exploration of robust security solutions.
The project has two objectives: (a) to develop innovative architectures, abstractions, models, and algorithms for large-scale CPS security testbeds; and (b) to design and implement a high-fidelity, scalable, open-access CPS security testbed for the smart grid, and to conduct research experimentation. The testbed integrates appropriate cyber-control-physical hardware/software components, models, and algorithms in a modular design that enables federation of smaller testbeds to form a large-scale virtual experimental environment. The use cases for the testbed include vulnerability assessment, risk assessment, risk mitigation studies, and attack-defense exercises. The project also aims to develop standardized datasets, models, libraries, and use cases, and make the testbed available to a broader research community through an open-, remote-access model by leveraging collaboration from academic and industry partners.
Besides contributing to research and technology that will enable a future electric power grid that is secure and resilient, this project develops and disseminates innovative curriculum modules including CPS Cyber Defense Competitions (CPS-CDC) for imparting security knowledge to students via an inquiry-based learning paradigm. The project also mentors students, including underrepresented minorities, in thesis work and Capstone projects, and exposes high-school students to cybersecurity concepts via testbed demonstrations.
PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH
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PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
The outcomes of this NSF CPS project include the following: (i) Development of innovative testbed architecture, with suitable abstractions and modularity, for large-scale realistic CPS security testbeds for the smart grid; (ii) Designed, implemented, and deployed a high- fidelity, scalable, remote-access testbed for research experimentation; (Iii) Novel utilization of the testbed to analyze and quantify impacts of cyber attacks, including coordinated attacks, for critical Wide-area Monitoring, Protection, and Control (WAMPAC) applications of the smart grid; (iv) Evaluated the effectiveness of anomaly detection and mitigation algorithms (cyber, physical, and cyber-physical) on the testbed for critical WAMPAC applications, such as remedial action scheme, automatic generation control, and wide-area damping control; (v) Conceptualized and piloted a NERC’s GridEx like studies considering dynamic, evolving attack scenarios leveraging the CPS security testbed; (vi) Conducted security evaluations of the software platforms and protocols, that are found within the electric power grid, and responsibly disseminating the results to professional community and utility industry; (vii) Provided remote access capability to the testbed infrastructure - with sample datasets, models, and use-cases - to benefit a broader community of academic and industry researchers (15+ user organizations, 25+ use-cases); (viii) Conducted testbed-based cybersecurity training sessions (12+ instances -- at NERC's GridSec Conference, for multiple utilities in the State of Iowa, for Florida Reliability Coordinating Council, for Idaho Power Company) focusing on attack-defense techniques and tools for utility industry, benefitting 350+ professionals; (ix) Hosted a cybersecurity workshop, in partnership with USAID and NARUC, for Black Sea countries utility regulatory professionals, and hosted another workshop for utility industry (in the state of Iowa) in partnership with Iowa State University's Electric Power Research Center (EPRC); (x) Mentored approximately 10 graduate research assistants in the area of CPS security for smart grid and contributed to the cybersecurity workforce; (xi) Developed and taught a graduate level course on CPS security for smart grid (taught 5 instances throughout this project), which contributed to the education and workforce development in this area; (xii) The developed CPS security testbed has become an institutional infrastructure at ISU for R&D, educational, and training programs; (xiii) Disseminated the research results and outcomes via research publications in major IEEE journals and conferences, NSF CPS PI Meetings, Department Homeland Security (DHS) PI Meetings, NSF CPS VO, and NSF-sponsored workshops; (xiv) Broader impacts of this research outcomes in other CPS-based critical infrastructure systems -- key outcomes include: the CPS security research experimentation methodology, testbed architectures and abstractions, the remote-access technology to the testbed, cyber attack techniques and tools, cyber defense techniques and tools, and the testbed-based educational and training platform.
Last Modified: 09/16/2020
Modified by: Manimaran Govindarasu
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