Energy | South Carolina Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity

The Energy Sector is comprised of three major components:

Electricity
Oil
Natural gas

This sector is considered an “enabling function” by the federal government due to its unique interconnected relationship with all the other sectors. Without power, many essential services and industries simply would not function. Within South Carolina, there are 20 electric cooperatives, 21 city-owned electric power systems, and one state-owned system (Santee Cooper).

SC CIC has existing partnerships with electric cooperatives across the state and is actively working to establish more. This effort has been boosted by SC CIC’s external speaking engagements focusing on cyber-related threats to the energy sector.

The Energy Sector is also one of the sectors that was selected for the SC CIC collaboration with the students at The Citadel, where a custom threat profile was created that identified and analyzed the specific threats the sector faces.

Resources for the Energy Sector:

Energy worker looking up at a powerline structure.

Electric Cooperatives of South Carolina (ECSC)

ECSC is a statewide service and trade association for electric cooperatives in South Carolina. ECSC provides members with communications, legal services, personnel training, safety programs, and public and government relations.

Energy worker on a cherry picker near powerlines.

South Carolina Association of Municipal Power Systems (SCAMPS)

An affiliate association of the Municipal Association of South Carolina (MASC), SCAMPS provides employees of municipal power systems with legislative initiatives, public relations programs, and training for electrical personnel.

Energy worker holding a pad device at a facility.

CISA | Energy Sector Webpage

CISA’s Energy Sector webpage contains detailed information on what types of organizations belong to the Commercial Facilities Sector in the U.S. along with federal plans for the sector (Commercial Facilities Sector-Specific Plan) and all critical infrastructure in the country (National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP)). Sector-specific plans address how the NIPP should be utilized while considering each sector’s unique perspective.

Energy worker standing at a control center with multiple computer monitors.

U.S. Department of Energy | CESER

The Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, & Emergency Response (CESER), through the U.S. Department of Energy, is responsible for strengthening energy infrastructure security. CESER focuses on ensuring the Energy Sector’s preparedness to respond to threats through such efforts as the Cybersecurity Risk Information Sharing Program, as well as on the research and development of advanced technologies to support the sector.

Energy worker monitoring a control panel.

Information Sharing & Analysis Centers (ISACs)

Information Sharing & Analysis Centers (ISACs) help critical infrastructure professionals protect their infrastructure and employees from cybersecurity threats through the collection, analysis, and dissemination of threat information. ISACs help increase situational awareness across the critical infrastructure sectors through information sharing, partnerships, and networking opportunities.