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Cyberterrorism

Design and Implementation of a Cyber-Physical Security Testbed for Networked Electric Drive Systems

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

Research investigators have designed and implemented a cyber-physical security testbed for networked electric drive systems, providing a comprehensive platform to explore and understand the intricate interactions between cyber and physical systems. This testbed, supported by the National Science Foundation, seamlessly integrates power electronics, computer science, and cybersecurity, offering a controlled environment for simulating cyber-attacks and mirroring real-world scenarios. The testbed has been demonstrated to be an invaluable resource for studying cyber-physical security, providing a practical and dynamic platform for testing and validating cybersecurity measures.

Key Takeaways:

  • The testbed consists of four electric machine drives, meticulously configured to emulate small-scale but realistic IT and OT networks, providing a controlled environment for simulating cyber-attacks.
  • The testbed incorporates a real-time visualization system using InfluxDB and Grafana, offering a dynamic and interactive representation of networked electric drives and their associated security monitoring mechanisms.
  • A Python-based script has been developed and implemented to execute step-stone attacks over a wireless local area network (WLAN), simulating a real-world attack vector that could be exploited by adversaries.
  • Cyber-attack detection algorithms have been developed and demonstrated to be effective in the testbed's security framework.
  • The testbed serves as a practical and dynamic platform for testing and validating cybersecurity measures in the context of networked electric drive systems.
  • Jin Ye and his colleagues at the Intelligent Power Elect & Elect Machine Lab at the University of Georgia have developed and implemented the testbed.
  • Additional authors include He Yang, Bryan Cooper Hammond, Bowen Yang, Stephen Coshatt, Wenzhan Song, Qi Li, Kun Hu, and Ramviyas Parasuraman.

Statistics:

  • The testbed consists of 4 electric machine drives.
  • The testbed has been designed to simulate a wide array of cyber-attacks against IT and OT networks.
  • The testbed utilizes a Python-based script to execute step-stone attacks over a WLAN.
  • The testbed's security framework incorporates cyber-attack detection algorithms.
  • The testbed provides a real-time visualization system using InfluxDB and Grafana.
  • The research has been peer-reviewed.
  • The research was supported by the National Science Foundation.

Sources:

  • "Real-world Cyber Security Demonstration for Networked Electric Drives" (Ieee Journal of Emerging and Selected Topics In Power Electronics, 2025; 13(4): 4659-4668)
  • "NewsRx. Recent Research from University of Georgia Highlight Findings in Engineering (Real-world Cyber Security Demonstration for Networked Electric Drives)." Journal of Engineering. October 20, 2025; p 2549.
  • Ieee Journal of Emerging and Selected Topics In Power Electronics (Ieee-inst Electrical Electronics Engineers Inc, 445 Hoes Lane, Piscataway, NJ 08855-4141, USA)
  • Jin Ye, University of Georgia, Intelligent Power Elect & Elect Machine Lab, Athens, GA 30602, United States.

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