- Communication units are found in Chinese manufactured solar inverters
- These have the potential to destabilase the electricity grid
- It is unknown how many were found or intended behind them
Rogue -Communication Units have been discovered in Chinese -made solar inverters, devices that play a ‘critical role’ in the renewable energy infrastructure, Pakinomist Reports. This has led us energy officers to assess the risk of new technologies produced in China.
Power inverters are primarily produced in China, but are used globally to connect solar panels and wind turbines to the electricity grid as well as used in heat pumps, batteries and electric vehicle chargers.
It is reported that over the past nine months some batteries purchased from Chinese suppliers have been discovered with hidden communication units such as cellular radios – according to sources familiar with the case.
Rogue components
Experts have warned that communication devices could avoid firewalls and turn off inverters remotely, pose a huge risk of power networks as they could change settings, damage energy infrastructure, destabilize the grid and cause widespread blackouts.
It is not yet clear how many of these communication units were found, nor the nature of the units themselves – and the intention behind the planting of these is unknown. That said, the US Ministry of Energy has confirmed that it is constantly assessing the risks associated “with new technologies and that there were significant challenges with producers who revealed and document functionalities.”
This is not the first time sun grid has been targeted – and security errors that leave them vulnerable to being hijacked and even disabled. 46 Vulnerabilities Discovered by SUPPLY proved to allow hackers the opportunity to implement remote code execution, denial of service, acquisition of devices and access -shell platforms or sensitive information.
It seems that considering recent events and rising geopolitical tensions that the United States will appear to move production to domestic production facilities for a more secure supply chain, however, it is worth noting that Huawei is currently the world’s largest supplier of inverters accounting for 29% of shipments around the world in 2022.
