Feds award $15M cybersecurity grant to US electric cooperative group

SecurityWeek reports that the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, which represents about 900 local electric cooperatives across the U.S. that serve 42 million individuals, has been awarded a $15 million grant by the U.S. Department of Energy to help bolster their industrial control systems' cybersecurity capabilities. The Energy Department will be handing the money over a three-year period, with $10 million to be given this year. Such funding could be leveraged by electric cooperatives toward implementing ICS cyber monitoring technologies. "As threats and threat actors evolve, electric cooperatives consistently work to improve their cyber defenses. Funding like this helps co-ops stay ahead of the curve. Our longstanding partnership with DOE makes the electric grid more resilient, reliable, and secure," said NRECA CEO Jim Matheson. The grant comes amid mounting cybersecurity threats against energy providers' ICS, as evidenced by past attacks against Ukraine energy providers. U.S. electric utilities have also had their IT systems impacted by cyberattacks.