Electric utilities across North America are confronting a growing wave of physical threats to power infrastructure, prompting industry-wide efforts to improve security and preparedness. A recent large-scale simulation known as GridEx highlighted the range of risks facing modern power grids, including drone strikes, vandalism, and coordinated attacks targeting substations and transmission systems, tells IEEE Specttrum.
GridEx, organized by the Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center (E-ISAC), brought together utilities, government agencies, and industry partners in November 2025 to rehearse responses to potential disruptions. The exercise placed participants in a fictional scenario involving attacks on a nation’s electric grid during a major international sporting event. The scenario reflected real concerns that high-profile events and extreme weather conditions can make critical infrastructure more vulnerable to disruption.
Participation in the exercise reached record levels, with more than 28,000 individuals taking part. The growing turnout reflects increasing anxiety within the energy sector as physical attacks on electrical infrastructure continue to rise. Reports from the North American Electric Reliability Corporation show more than 3,500 physical security incidents involving the grid in 2025, up significantly from previous years. Although only a small portion caused power outages, the trend indicates mounting risks to essential infrastructure.
Among the emerging threats, drones have attracted particular concern. Small unmanned aircraft can approach substations or transmission lines quickly and may be difficult to identify as either malicious actors or recreational users. Security researchers and utilities are therefore exploring detection technologies that combine radar with pan-tilt-zoom cameras to track drones even when visual contact is lost.
Utilities are also adopting advanced monitoring systems that incorporate artificial intelligence and robotics. AI-enabled surveillance tools can analyze images from substation inspections to detect anomalies such as damaged fences or unauthorized activity. Other technologies, such as fiber-optic sensing systems, can identify disturbances along transmission corridors by analyzing subtle changes in optical signals.
Together, these strategies represent a broader shift toward integrated physical security for the grid. Industry leaders emphasize that exercises such as GridEx are valuable only if utilities apply the lessons learned to strengthen their real-world defenses against an evolving set of threats.