The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) is a non-profit regulatory authority whose mission is to ensure the effective and efficient reduction of risks to the reliability and security of the electrical systems within North America. NERC is also the Electric Reliability Organization (ERO) for North America, and is subject to oversight by the Federal Energy Regulation Commission (FERC) as well government authorities in Canada. NERC reliability standards (known as CIP or Critical Infrastructure Protection) cover aspects of security including physical, electronic, and personnel. All organizations who are involved with the “bulk electrical network” in North America are subject to NERC standards.
All ZPE Systems Nodegrid solutions offer impenetrable security without sacrifice that ensures full compliance and offers true peace of mind, all while reducing total costs. Below is an overview of Nodegrid features that align directly with CIP standards.
CIP-007-6 Cyber Security – Systems Security Management
- IPSEC, openVPN, SSH and SSL encryption
- Multiple user accounts with unique passwords
- Separate administrator accounts and passwords
- Exceptional password security featuring TACACS+ and RADIUS
- Unauthorized access attempts trigger alerts
- Restrict access through ID/password authentication via local database or central authentication server
- Access privileges tied to specific users or groups
- Access monitoring and logging
- Alerts may be sent by email or SNMP
- Alert conditions may be configured based on variables including access events, content, and environmental status changes
- ACL privileges can be defined per user or group
CIP-008-6 Cyber Security – Incident Reporting and Response Planning
- Detailed logging that includes user access, port, and connection information
- Both internal and external syslog records