2021/07/13 by Aldar C.-F. Chan, Jianying Zhou, Chan, Aldar C-F. +1
Computer Science · Engineering · #Advanced Malware Detection Techniques #Cryptography and Security (cs.CR) #FOS: Computer and information sciences #Physical Unclonable Functions (PUFs) and Hardware Security #Smart Grid Security and Resilience
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2107.05863
openalex publication_date 2021/07/13 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
A SCADA system is a distributed network of cyber-physical devices used for instrumentation and control of critical infrastructures such as an electric power grid. With the emergence of the smart grid, SCADA systems are increasingly required to be connected to more open systems and security becomes crucial. However, many of these SCADA systems have been deployed for decades and were initially not designed with security in mind. In particular, the field devices in these systems are vulnerable to false command injection from an intruding or compromised device. But implementing cryptographic defence on these old-generation devices is challenging due to their computation constraints. As a key requirement, solutions to protect legacy SCADA systems have to be an add-on. This paper discusses two add-on defence strategies for legacy SCADA systems -- the data diode and the detect-and-respond approach -- and compares their security guarantees and applicable scenarios. A generic architectural framework is also proposed to implement the detect-and-respond strategy, with an instantiation to demonstrate its practicality.