[HIB]Security Is Next Multi-Billion Dollar Boom for Smart Grid

The security of the smart grid, from privacy and ownership of personal information among consumers to hackers' ability to fell the entire grid in one sweep of malicious code, has been a hotly debated topic since the smart grid's earliest days. So it is no surprise to hear that security measures that protect the grid is set to be a multi-billion-dollar industry in the very near future. According to a new report by Pike Research, 15% of all smart grid investments over the next few years will be for security, representing about $21 billion by 2015. CNET reports, "With the U.S. electrical grid--and other national grids worldwide--poised to become smart systems with integrated communications, the possible threat of sabotage has become an obvious concern. To that end, the U.S. government has set aside funding to develop security protocols. Others are following suit. The National Institute of Standards and Technology is being pushed by the U.S. Department of Energy and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to develop standards that can be integrated with all the types of systems that make up the web of smart grid communications."

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