U of T researcher leads effort to protect power utilities from quantum attacks
![""](/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-05/Kundur_Quantum-1-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&itok=yCpj6MFD)
Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering researcher Deepa Kundur, second from right, is leading a collaboration between academia and industry that鈥檚 focused on developing solutions to protect power utilities from cyberattacks using quantum technologies (photo by Neil Ta)
Published: May 23, 2024
A researcher from the 狐狸视频 is leading a multidisciplinary research group that aims develop quantum-based technology solutions to defend power utilities against future cyberattacks.
With the support of a first-of-its-kind NSERC Alliance-Mitacs Accelerate grant worth $1.45 million, the group is working at the intersection of quantum, cybersecurity and critical infrastructure.
鈥淲e have to stay ahead of the game,鈥 says group lead Deepa Kundur, professor and chair of U of T鈥檚 Edward S. Rogers Sr. department of electrical and computer engineering in the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering.
鈥淭echnology is always changing the threat landscape. And quantum computing, which is becoming more feasible and practical, is a powerful tool that will make our classical defences obsolete.鈥
Kundur鈥檚 project is a collaboration between academia, Hydro-Qu茅bec and Xanadu, one of Canada鈥檚 most successful quantum computer startups. A second team 鈥 headed by Associate Professor Atefeh Mashatan of Toronto Metropolitan University and involving quantum solution leaders Crypto4A and evolutionQ 鈥 will build a road map for the classical-to-quantum migration for power grids in preparation for a future transition.
Quantum enhancement is the next stage in the evolution of today鈥檚 smart grids, so-named because they incorporate information-communication technology (ICT) into their operations. ICT has allowed smart grids to adapt to changing conditions and electricity load, as well respond more efficiently to natural disasters in order to meet society鈥檚 increasing power needs in an intelligent, sustainable way.
鈥淚CT and its advanced sensors generate more data than before,鈥 says Kundur. 鈥淲e transport this data to different parts of the grid to start co-ordinating information to make decisions based on synchronized information and enhanced situational awareness.鈥
One potential downside of a data-driven smart grid, however, is the introduction of new vulnerabilities since attackers can now target not just the physical infrastructure, but the information that flows through it.
That鈥檚 because a smart grid鈥檚 connectivity increases opportunities for access. Also, ICT adds a level of complexity that results in emergent properties that are difficult to predict and can be challenging to safeguard. And the standards and policies put in place to mitigate operational variations mean there鈥檚 a level of interoperability between working grids that hackers can use to their advantage.
While cybersecurity experts have so far incorporated layers of defences into our smart grids, Kundur warns that those safeguards are not ready for quantum technologies.
鈥淎lgorithms and cryptography that are incredibly difficult for classical computers to crack become solvable with a quantum computer,鈥 she says. 鈥淎nd then other questions arise. For example, when the power utilities themselves start to use quantum sensors, is this quantum-enhanced information better for attack detection or does it give attackers an ability to hide themselves?鈥
The question is tough to answer when you consider that quantum sensors of this nature 鈥 and the quantum data they would generate 鈥 don鈥檛 exist yet.
鈥淲e鈥檒l take classical data, use models to predict what quantum versions of the information would appear to be, and then perform anomaly and attack detection on it,鈥 says Kundur.
鈥淲e鈥檒l be experimenting with quantum machine learning for better pattern recognition to detect a cyberattack. This is a highly exploratory project.鈥
Even if it鈥檚 decades before manufacturers integrate quantum attack-detection algorithms in their devices, Kundur says foundational research that she and her team will carry out in the next few years is a valuable endeavour.
鈥淪ecurity is a process. It鈥檚 very much a dynamic interaction,鈥 she says. 鈥淎nd though we can never get to 100-per-cent protection, it鈥檚 something we have to continually try to achieve.鈥