Power Grid Vulnerable To Cyber Attack, Former Defense Secretary Says
The power grid is vulnerable to a terrorist attack, former Secretary of Defense William Cohen said. A direct assault on the electrical system would cause chaos and civil unrest throughout the country, the former government official said. Natural disasters, such as Carrington Event-level solar flares, could also take down the power delivery system nationwide.
William Cohen was a Republican Senator from Maine and is currently serving as the CEO and chairman of The Cohen Group. Cohen recently released a new thriller, Collision, which is published by Forge Books. Cohen served as Secretary of Defense under President Bill Clinton from 1997-2001.
The destruction of the power grid by terrorists would not necessarily have to involve an EMP attack, according to Cohen.
“You can do it through cyber attacks, and that’s the real threat coming up as well. We have to look at cyber attacks being able to shut down our power grid, which you have to remember is in the private sector’s hands, not the government’s. And we’re vulnerable,” the former Secretary of Defense added. “It’s possible and whether it’s likely to happen soon remains to be seen.”
As previously reported by the Inquisitr, former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said that a cyber attack on the power grid was a matter of “when,” not “if.”
Former senior CIA analyst and EMP Task Force On National Homeland Security Director, Dr. Peter Vincent Pry, told Newsmax TV that that America is a “sitting duck” for a terror attack that could completely destroy the power grid and take the lives of every nine out of ten Americans in the process.
William Cohen detailed the power grid threats and what role modern technology could play in a terror attack that would leave all of America sitting in the dark.
“That’s because the technology continues to expand and terrorism has become democratized. Many, many people across the globe now have access to information which allows them to be able to put together a very destructive means of carrying out their terrorist plans. We’re better at detecting than we were in the past. We’re much more focused in integrating and sharing the information that we have, but we’re still vulnerable and we’ll continue to be vulnerable as long as groups can operate either on the margins or covertly to build these kind of campaigns of terror.”
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) reviewed the soundness and functionality of the power grid, and gave the vital piece of infrastructure a barely passing grade of “D+.” The rating means the power grid is in “poor to fair condition and mostly below standard, with many elements approaching the end of their service life.” The ASCE review also revealed that a “large portion of the system exhibits significant deterioration” with a “strong risk of failure.”
Do you think enough attention and funds are being given in order to the secure the power grid?
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