Cyber Terror Threats Against Nuclear Power Plants

Year 2023, Volume: 8 Issue: 2, 237 - 244, 03.07.2023

Hüseyin Kuru

https://doi.org/10.53850/joltida.1198872

Abstract

After the Cold War period, with the restructuring of the world, globalization, the revolution in information technology and the reconstruction of capitalism have created a new type of society, the "network society". The dependence of countries on information technologies, especially the internet, has increased day by day, and it has become almost impossible for individuals, state institutions and private companies to continue their activities independently of cyberspace, which is described as the fifth operational area. This situation has made it a critical priority to ensure the physical and cyber security of nuclear power plants, which carry the energy burden of the societies and at the same time pose great security risks. In this period, states, state-sponsored and radical terrorist groups that wanted to close the power deficit against military and economically strong states, started to develop asymmetric methods of struggle. In the end new threat vectors such as cyber terrorism have emerged and states that have moved many institutions and services to cyberspace have become more vulnerable to malicious attacks and terrorist activities. In this study, the concept of terrorism and cyber terrorism have been examined and focused on the SCADA systems of nuclear power plants and in the last section cyber security of these systems have been evaluated. This Implementation of this model aims to simplify the process for all organizations in the Nuclear Sector—regardless of their size, cybersecurity risk, or current level of cybersecurity sophistication—to apply the principles and best practices of risk management. Ultimately, the framework and this implementation model are focused on helping individual organizations reduce and better manage their cybersecurity risks, contributing to a more secure and resilient sector overall.

Keywords

Terrorism, cyber Terror, Nuclear Power Plants, SCADA systems, Cyber Security

References

• Allison, G. (2018). Nuclear terrorism: Did we beat the odds or change them. Harvard Kennedy School Cambridge United States.
• Anand, K., Krishnan, P., & Devendra, K. P. (2014). Facing the reality of cyber threats in the power sector. Energy Policy, 65, 126-133.
• Bal, İ. (2006). Terrorism – National and Regional Experiences in Combating Terrorism, Terrorism and Global Terrorism, USAK Publications, Ankara.
• BBC (2010). US President Barack Obama Warns of Nuclear Terrorism, URL: https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-us-canada-35948480
• Bennett B.T., (2007). Understanding, Assessing and Responding to Terrorism: Protecting Critical Infrastructure and Personnel, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey, 51
• Bıçakcı, S., Ergun, F. D., & Çelikpala, M. (2015). Cyber security in Turkey. Economics and Foreign Policy Research Center (EDAM) Cyber Policy Papers Series 1, 1-35.
• Boothby, W. H. (2015). Deception in the modern, cyber battlespace. In J. D. Ohlin, K. Govern and C. Finkelstein (Eds.), Cyberwar: Law and ethics for virtual conflicts. New York: Oxford University Press, 195-214.
• Boyla, M., & Canküyer Y. (1995). Glossary of Nuclear Energy Terms, Ankara: Turkish Language Association Publications.
• Cárdenas, A. A., Amin, S., & Sastry, S. (2008). Research Challenges for the Security of Control Systems. HotSec, 5, 15.
• Case, D. U. (2016). Analysis of the cyber-attack on the Ukrainian power grid. Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center (E-ISAC), 388, 1-29.
• Chee-Wooi T. (2010). Cybersecurity for Critical Infrastructures: Attack and Defense Modelling, IEEE, 40(4), 853-865.
• Council of Ministers (2013). Decision No. 2013/4890, National Cyber Security Strategy and 2013-2014 Action Plan, http://www.resmigazete.gov.tr/eskiler/2013/06/20130620-1.htm
• Daricili, A. B. (2014). Analysis of Cyber Attacks Alleged to Originate from the Russian Federation. Uludag University Journal of Social Sciences Institute, 7(2), 5–7.
• Daricili, A. B., & Özdal, B. (2017). Analysis of Russian Federation-Turkey Relations in the Context of the Information Warfare. Istanbul Gelisim University Journal of Social Sciences 4(1), 19-40.
• Denk, E. (2011). Efforts to Ban nuclear weapons as a Weapon of Mass Destruction, Ankara University Journal of Social Studies Faculty, 66(03), 28,93-95.
• Desouza, K. C., & Hensgen, T. (2003). Semiotic emergent framework to address the reality of cyberterrorism. Technological forecasting and social change, 70(4), 385-396.
• Dickstein, P., & Vanunu, S. (2016). Nuclear Terror: The Essentials, Threats, Effects and Resilience.
• Eduardo E. G. (2013). Designing a Security Audit Plan for a Critical Information Infrastructure, Christopher Laing et al. (Ed.), Securing Critical Infrastructures and Critical Control Systems, IGI Global, 262-285. EIA (2021). Nuclear energy is energy in the core of an atom https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/index.cfm?page=nuclear_home#tab1
• Falkenrath, N., and Thayer, A. A. H. (1998). Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Terrorism and Covert Attack., Cambridge Mass., MIT Press.
• Ferguson, C. D. (2015), Nuclear Energy: What Everyone Should Know, Ankara, Buzdagi Publishing House, First Edition.
• Gelbstein, E. E. (2013). Designing a Security Audit Plan for a Critical Information Infrastructure, Christopher Laing et al. (Ed.), Securing Critical Infrastructures and Critical Control Systems, IGI Global, 263. Güzel, C. (2002). Fear of Fear: Terrorism. Terror in the Face of Erased Faces, 7-19.
• Hubbert, M. K. (1956). Nuclear Energy and Fossil Fuels, Houston, Texas: Shell Development Company Exploration and Production Research Division, No. 95, p.23.
• IAEA (2007). Concept and Terms: IAEA Safety Standards, URL: http://www-ns.iaea.org/standards/concepts-terms.asp
• IAEA (2021). https://www.iaea.org/resources/databases/international-nuclear-and-radiological-event-scale.
• Kara, M., & Çelikkol, S. (2011). Critical Infrastructures: Electricity Generation and Distribution Systems SCADA Security, 25-26., IV. Network and Information Security Symposium Proceedings, TMMOB Chamber of Electrical Engineers, Ankara.
• Mariotte, M. (2016). Wishful Thinking: the Basis of New Nuclear Economics, https://safeenergy.org/2016/03/28/wishful-thinking-the-basis-of-new-nuclear/#more-13790
• NATO Review Magazine (2011). New Threats: The Cyber-Dimension: URL: https://www.nato.int/docu/review/2011/11-september/Cyber-Threads/EN/index.htm
• Ng Eng H. (2016). Speech by Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen at the Committee of Supply Debate 2016, posted 8 Apr 2016, http://www.mindef.gov.sg/content/imindef/ press_room/official_releases.sp.html.
• NRC (2023). International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/emerg-preparedness/about-emerg-preparedness/emerg-classification/event-scale.html
• NTI (2021). Global Nuclear Policy: reducing reliance on nuclear weapons, preventing their use and their spread, and ultimately ending them as a threat to the World, URL: http://www.nti.org/ about/global-nuclear -policy, Last Accessed: 21.09.2021
• Özkışlalı, G. (2008). Globalization, the Internet and the Changing Face of Terrorism; Cyber Terrorism. Published Master's Thesis. Hacettepe SBE, Ankara, 71.
• Raj, P., & Yadav S. (2022). Cyber Terrorism: A Threat to Cyber World. Emerging Trends in Technology & its Impact on Law, 1.
• Richelson, J. T. (2012). Nuclear Terrorism: How Big a Threat?. National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book, 388.
• Shawn C. (2013). Industrial Control Systems Cyber Security Presentation, ASIS: 4th Middle East Security Conference, Dubai.
• Şimşek, M. (2016). Terrorism: A Conceptual Study. Academic Perspective. International Refereed Journal of Social Sciences, 54, 319-335.
• UN (2005). International Convention on Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, URL: http://www.un-documents.net/icsant.htm, Last Accessed: 21.05.2021
• UN Climate Summit (2014). https://www.un.org/climatechange/summit
• Valo, J. (2014). Cyber Attacks and the Use of Force in International Law, University of Helsinki, Unpublished Master's thesis. https://www.iaea.org/resources/databases/international-nuclear-and-radiological-event-scale.
• Wardlaw, G. (1989). Political terrorism: Theory, tactics and counter-measures. Cambridge University Press.
• Weimann, G. (2006). Terror on the Internet: The new arena, the new challenges. US Institute of Peace Press.