Smart grid forensic science: applications, challenges, and open issues

Smart grid forensic science is a newly flourishing research area that is tightly coupled with cyber and physical security of the smart grid. Post-mortem analysis of a power system after a cyber attack or natural disaster generally provides the most accurate comprehension of the real-world vulnerabilities of the system and helps to protect the grid against similar attacks in the future as well as avoid failures during disasters. Besides increasing the security level of the smart grid, smart grid forensics aids evidence collection for the service of criminal justice. For instance, data extracted from smart meters and data collectors can provide evidence to legal proceedings in electricity theft matters. Furthermore, authentication and timestamping audio recordings using power grid frequency have been employed in several recent academic studies, as well as by the Metropolitan Police Forensic Audio Laboratory in London. Briefly, smart grid forensic science is emerging as a powerful security component of the power system. On the other hand, storage and processing of the enormous amount of data introduce significant challenges together with the privacy issue. In this article, we introduce the emerging application areas of smart grid forensic science, discuss the challenges, and outline the open issues in the topic. This article aims to serve as a roadmap for future smart grid forensic studies.