Data Communication Security of Advanced Metering Infrastructure in Smart Grid

Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) is very critical part for wired/wireless communication in Smart Grid. It involves communication of vital smart metering data to central control center for smooth functioning of smart grid. Security and reliability of data is of paramount importance for operational reliability of smart grid. AMI network is susceptible to many cyber security threats and attacks. Therefore it is desirable to prevent the data from such vulnerabilities. The paper proposes two-phase method to provide security of data using dedicated authentication server which inhibits malicious and unauthorized nodes to gain access to AMI communication network. Secure environment is created by this method that helps in achieving better throughput and packet delivery ratio. Thus, it improves the security and performance of the network.