Classification and Detection of PMU Data Manipulation Attacks Using Transmission Line Parameters

Modern power grids are increasingly relying on real-time data, such as those from Phasor Measurement Units (PMUs), for their control and management operations. Due to its dependence on the Internet for data transfer, the grid is susceptible to a wide range of cyber attacks. Among these, data manipulation attacks are of particular interest in the context of PMU data, due to their potential for causing widespread damage. In such attacks, the adversary changes the measurements in order to bias the estimate of system states. In this paper we propose an effective and simple-to-implement mechanism for detecting such attacks. The proposed methodology is based on evaluating the equivalent impedances of transmission lines. Being independent of the conventional bad data detection scheme, it is also able to detect the so called “false data injection attacks”. Extensive simulation results using real PMU data have been provided in order to verify the accuracy of the proposed detector.