Cybersecurity challenges in renewable-dominated power grids addressing vulnerabilities and resilience strategies

Journal article, 2026

The global transition to renewable-dominated power systems is reshaping grid operation while introducing new cybersecurity risks. As renewable technologies scale and rely on digital control and communication platforms, the cyberattack surface expands and exposes critical vulnerabilities. Here, we report an assessment of cybersecurity threats in renewable-dominated grids by examining representative attack scenarios, including false data injection into power control, denial of service on distributed energy resources and cloud platforms, inverter parameter manipulation, and GPS time synchronization spoofing. These threats are shown to compromise system stability, reliability, and resilience. We further evaluate current industrial practices, regulatory frameworks, and emerging standards in addressing these risks. We find that existing approaches remain insufficient for the complexity of renewable-dominated systems. We conclude by identifying the root causes of past failures and outlining research and policy directions to strengthen cyber resilience in future power systems.