Nuclear power plants warned!

VIENNA: Operators of nuclear power plants worldwide are “struggling” to adapt to the increasing and potentially dangerous threat of cyber attacks, a report warned said on Monday.
The nuclear industry “is beginning — but struggling — to come to grips with this new, insidious threat,” the Chatham House think-tank in London said in a study based on 18 months of investigation.
Its findings suggest that nuclear plants “lack preparedness for a large-scale cyber security emergency, and there would be considerable problems in trying to coordinate an adequate response.”
It highlighted insufficient funding and training, a “paucity” of regulatory standards, increasing use of digital systems and greater use of cheaper but riskier commercial “off-the-shelf” software.
In addition there is a “pervading myth” that nuclear power plants are protected because they are “air gapped” — in other words not connected to the Internet.
In fact, many nuclear facilities have gradually developed some form of Internet connectivity, and computer systems can be infected with a USB drive or other removable media device.
This was the case with Stuxnet, a virus reportedly developed by the United States and Israel — and implanted with a flash drive — which caused Iran’s nuclear facilities major problems in 2010.
Chatham House added that Stuxnet, which it said is also believed to have infected a Russian nuclear plant, has had the unintended effect of teaching cyber criminals how to improve their techniques.