The identification of malware tied to a cyberattack on Ukraine last year is putting a renewed focus on threats to America’s electric grid.

Security firms ESET and Dragos revealed the malware, dubbed “Crash Override” or “Industroyer,” this week. According to the researchers, the malware is only the second to be tailored to industrial control systems and developed and deployed to be disruptive — the first was the Stuxnet virus that ravaged Iran’s nuclear program years ago.

The attack, which knocked out power in Kiev for about an hour, was one of two targeting Ukraine’s electric grid in recent years. Russia, which annexed Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula, is widely believed to have a connection to both attacks.
Experts say the cyber weapon could be deployed against electric infrastructure in Europe and much of Asia and the Middle East and, with slight modifications, could be used against the United States as well.

http://thehill.com/policy/cybersecurity/337877-crash-override-malware-heightens-fears-for-us-electric-grid