Spain Investigates Cybersecurity of Power Suppliers After Widespread Grid Outage

Spain is investigating the cybersecurity practices of its power suppliers following a major power outage that affected much of the Iberian Peninsula at the end of April. While initial assessments by Spanish and Portuguese grid operators ruled out a cyberattack, authorities are now questioning whether smaller, independent energy producers may have inadvertently opened vulnerabilities within the national power infrastructure. 

The outage disrupted electricity supply across both Spain and Portugal, with most regions regaining power after ten hours. However, it took nearly a full day—23 hours—for Spain’s grid to be fully restored. Although no immediate signs of hacking were found, the duration and scale of the disruption raised alarms, prompting deeper scrutiny into the resilience of Spain’s decentralized energy network.

According to a report from the Financial Times, Spain’s National Cybersecurity Institute (INCIBE) has reached out to various smaller renewable energy producers, asking whether they experienced any unusual activity before the blackout on April 28. 

The inquiries also covered their use of recent security patches and whether their systems could be remotely accessed, signaling a broader concern over cybersecurity readiness among these suppliers.

This line of investigation is significant given Spain’s heavy reliance on renewable energy, much of which is generated by smaller, less centralized plants. The concern is that these entities, though critical to Spain’s green transition, may lack the robust cyber defenses

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