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Virginia Tech

Open-Source Testbed to Evaluate the Cybersecurity of Phasor Measurement Units

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

The Phasor Measurement Unit provides clear data for ease of grid visibility. A major component of the device is the Global Positioning System (GPS) for time synchronization across the board. However, this device has become more susceptible to cyber-attacks such as spoofing. This paper constructs an opensource testbed for the playback of PMU data and testing of cyberattacks on PMUs. Using a local GPS device to simulate what is done in the PMU, MATLAB for data conversion, and Linux operating system running on Ubuntu, the simulator can be constructed. The spoofing attack is done by adding a phase shift of the incoming data to simulate that the data is coming from a different time stamp and shifts between the original. Finally, it is all brought together by viewing the output in an open source Phasor Data Concentrator (PDC) to validate the process.

Degree

thesis:*
Name thesis:degree_name
Master of Science
Level thesis:degree_level
masters
Discipline thesis:degree_discipline
Electrical Engineering
Department dc:contributor.department
Electrical Engineering
Grantor dc:publisher
Virginia Tech
Year dc:date.issued
2022

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Zimmermann, Markus Kenneth
Chairs dc:contributor.committeechair
  • Centeno, Virgilio A.
  • Kekatos, Vasileios
Committee member dc:contributor.committeemember
  • De La Reelopez, Jaime

Subjects

dc:subject × 3

Rights

dc:rights
Statement dc:rights
  • In Copyright
Language dc:language.iso
en

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
Dc Identifier Other
vt_gsexam:35049
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/110889

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
Virginia Tech
Base URL
vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request
Last updated
2026-07-22
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
citation

Zimmermann, Markus Kenneth. Open-Source Testbed to Evaluate the Cybersecurity of Phasor Measurement Units. masters thesis, Virginia Tech, 2022. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/110889