In today’s increasingly digitized energy landscape, cybersecurity is no longer a back-office concern, it’s a frontline priority. From ransomware attacks to sophisticated nation-state threats, the U.S. energy sector faces growing risks that can disrupt supply, compromise safety, and erode public trust.  

As regulatory frameworks like NERC CIP continue to evolve to meet these challenges, energy operators must navigate a complex web of compliance requirements while protecting critical infrastructure. In this article, we explore the key cybersecurity challenges faced by the U.S. energy sector and unpack the regulatory landscape driving a more secure future.   

Cyberattacks on energy infrastructure from ransomware to nation-state intrusions can disrupt supply, damage assets, and threaten public safety. Incidents like Colonial Pipeline and Volt Typhoon underline the strategic importance of protecting operational network. At GreenPowerMonitor, a DNV company (GPM), we treat cybersecurity with the same rigor as reliability or performance. Every SCADA, RTU, and monitoring system we deliver is designed to uphold the highest standards of confidentiality, integrity, and availability under the NERC CIP framework. While NERC CIP applies to BES-registered entities (Bulk Electric System), our controls are designed to integrate seamlessly with each customer’s compliance program and evidence requirements. 

Challenges in cybersecurity in the U.S.

Despite the progress made through initiatives like NERC, FERC, and CIP, the U.S. energy sector still faces persistent cybersecurity challenges: 

• Protection of operational and personal data across IT/OT boundaries: 
  SCADA and energy management systems process both technical and personal data. Safeguarding this data from cyber threats and accidental leaks remains a top priority. 

• Incident handling and business continuity: 
  Many operators still lack clearly defined protocols for handling disruptions to energy systems. The result is delayed recovery and potential service loss in critical infrastructure. 

• Vendor transparency and supply-chain integrity: 
  Energy companies increasingly rely on global supply chains. Ensuring transparency and compliance in software, hardware, and cloud vendors especially across borders is complex and vital for trust. 

• Cloud and data sovereignty controls: 
  Some organizations offer “full-control” cloud solutions, but true compliance depends on meeting strict conditions for data privacy, cybersecurity standards, and contractual governance. 

These challenges align with the NERC CIP standards, which establish comprehensive cybersecurity requirements for critical electric infrastructure BES (Bulk Electric System) including asset identification, access control, incident reporting, and recovery processes. 

Solutions and what GPM offers 

A Robust cybersecurity framework 

• GPM operates under a globally harmonized cybersecurity model, combining regulatory alignment from European Union, Australia, and the United States. 

• Our systems are designed around the NERC CIP, NIS2, ISO 27001, and IEC 62443 principles ensuring that both IT and OT networks remain secure by design. 

ISO 27001 Certification 

GPM holds ISO 27001 certification, providing a recognized international benchmark for information security management systems (ISMS). This certification guarantees traceability, risk control, and continuous improvement in all cybersecurity processes from design to deployment. 

Cybersecurity tiers and SCADA protection 

GPM’s multi-tiered architecture delivers progressive security and resilience for SCADA and energy control networks: 

Level	Focus	Core benefit
Level 0 – Foundation	Redundant firewalls and baseline isolation	Protects SCADA perimeters and enforces zoning
Level 1 – Segmentation	DMZ with dedicated OT Security Server	Secure IT/OT communication and monitoring
Level 2 – Detection & Resilience	IDS integration and NAS backup	Provides proactive threat detection and reliable data recovery
Level 3 – Advanced Segmentation	Additional DMZ firewalls with logging and auditing	Strengthens network isolation and enhances forensic visibility
Level 4 – Maximum Redundancy	Full DMZ redundancy and failover	Ensures highest availability, continuity, and fault tolerance

This layered design directly aligns with NERC CIP-005, -007, -008, -010, and -011, ensuring comprehensive coverage across perimeter protection, system management, incident reporting, and information protection. 

U.S. Presence and local assurance 

We maintain a direct U.S. footprint, including: 

• An office and certified technicians based in the United States. 

• U.S. data centres centres to support customer compliance under FERC/NERC CIP and U.S. jurisdictional requirements. 

• Hardware and software development conducted within our secure European facilities (Spain and Norway), adhering to DNV’s software assurance lifecycle. 

System security management procedure

Documented procedures 

• Configurations are approved, versioned, and reviewed. With respect to IP list, data-flow matrix and block diagrams 

• Evidence of change control and responsibility assignment: each change is documented on the GPM ticketing system inventory  

• Commissioning documentation and IP/device inventories provide evidence inputs for CIP-002 categorization, CIP-005 perimeter definitions, and CIP-010 baseline/configuration change records. 

Access control lists

• Our Active Directory (AD)-based Identity and Access Management policy is fully aligned with NERC CIP-004 (Personnel & Training) and CIP-007 (System Security Management) requirements. 

• An access review process is scheduled for every 15 months (per CIP-004). 

• Audit logs are retained for 90 days minimum

Patch management

• Patch upgrades are continuously implemented in response to CVEs and Zero-Day vulnerabilities as they arise. We document the “patch evaluation and approval” step (e.g. who validates and authorizes deployment). compliant with CIP-007 R2. 

• We maintain version tracking logs for each system patch cycle, in accordance with our MD5 and SHA-256 checksum record policy. 

Incident response / recovery 

• We maintain a recovery plan aligned with CIP-008 (Incident Reporting and Response Planning) and CIP-009 (Recovery Plans for BES Cyber Systems) standards, along with a contact escalation list that includes both internal and external (commercial and nominal) contacts. 

• We conduct and document annual tabletop exercises in which participants from IT, security, operations, and management walk through hypothetical scenarios such as a cyberattack, power failure, or data breach to evaluate and demonstrate our incident response and recovery readiness. 

Conclusion

GPM is already strongly aligned with NERC CIP, particularly: 

• CIP-002 Asset Identification 

• CIP-005 Perimeter Protection 

• CIP-007 System Security Management 

• CIP-008 Incident Reporting 

• CIP-009 Recovery Planning 

• CIP-010 Configuration Change Management 

• CIP-011 Information Protection 

Our processes are audit-ready and compliant for SCADA environments. We are prepared to address any audit or compliance inquiries, and GPM can provide any required documentation related to our System Security Management procedures. Cybersecurity in the U.S. energy sector is evolving fast, and compliance with NERC CIP demands both technical excellence and procedural discipline. GPM meets this challenge by embedding cybersecurity into every system lifecycle phase-design, deployment, operation, and maintenance while maintaining local presence, global expertise, and certified assurance. 

GPM offer market-leading integrated data-driven solutions for the management and maintenance of renewable energy installations. Our main objective is to provide digital tools to maximize the performance of renewable energy assets, optimize efficiency in the management of renewable energy portfolios and contribute to have the greenest energy mix in the grid. 

Our onsite solutions include GPM PPC (Power Plant Controller), GPM EMS (Energy Management System) and GPM HEMS (Hybrid Energy Management System). Our cloud solutions include GPM Horizon for Wind, Solar and the newly available Storage. 

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