Critical energy infrastructure faces unprecedented cybersecurity challenges as grid modernization and digital transformation exponentially expand attack surfaces across interconnected cyber-physical systems. Traditional security approaches prove insufficient against sophisticated adversaries who increasingly target industrial control systems. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Resilience through Data-Driven, Intelligently Designed Control (RD2C) research initiative addresses these evolving threats through observational experimentation and novel control system development designed to enhance critical infrastructure resilience under attack conditions.

In this session, Jerry Cochran, deputy CIO and division director of cybersecurity and DigitalOps at PNNL, will share research insights on:

• Understanding how grid modernization and increased connectivity create exponentially expanding attack surfaces that challenge conventional security paradigms;
• Developing adaptive technologies and supervisory control methodologies that enable operational continuity and rapid recovery during cyber incidents;
• Translating laboratory experimentation and cyber-physical system characterization into practical deployment strategies for critical energy infrastructure protection.