The following information is taken from Conference Call notes and NERC Board of Trustees meeting minutes on NERC's website. I have put the info together because it is complimentary and provides a fuller picture than taken separately.

"The Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) requested NERC to serve as Electric Power Coordinator to the Department in the area of Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP)."

"This paper reports on recent activity and status of this work. 'Solar Sunrise', the cryptic government name given to an attack on some Department of Defense computer systems last year, revealed the plausibility of Information Warfare (IW) possibly linked with Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMI) as a replacement for conventional warfare. .....Although 'Solar Sunrise' was solved and resulted from the lowest threat level -- hacking -- it pointed to a real vulnerability. As this report is being written [my note: these minutes are dated May 10-11, 1999] another attack of similar type is under way, is not yet solved, and the threat level is therefore unknown."

"This is a valid concern as all computer systems now have some vulnerabilities to the indicated threats. At a meeting of electric power sector (EPS), DOE, and FBI representatives in April, one utility described that its computer facilities were routinely challenged, up to 100,000 times per month, from some 6,000 different sources. Although the very large majority of these "attacks" are benign, some may be of a malicious nature."

The above is from the May 10 Board of Trustees Minutes at:

ftp://ftp.nerc.com/pub/sys/all_updl/docs/bot/bot9905a/pdf

The letter from Secretary Richardson is also reproduced as part of the minutes.

Continuing in the Contingency Planning vein, but with Y2K focus, we have these statements:

"NERC has been working with DOE on a Y2K information center to provide inter-industry information during Y2K periods. The plan is to use the existing DOE information center and augment it during Y2K periods with NERC or electric industry staff."

"The Y2K Contingency Planning Task Force has recommended the use of a TMI satellite voice system as the preferred back up for Security Coordinator communications. NERC is arranging terms for a purchase of these systems by Security Coordinators. A dedicated channel will be leased from TMI for the period December 1999 through March 2000 for Security Coordinator back-up communications. The satellite systems are to be deployed initially from July 1999 through March 2000. After that, NERC will evaluate the suitability of satellite systems as a continuing back up to phone systems."

On a broader scale we find:

"The President's Council on Y2K has begun preliminary planning of a communications center for operation during critical Y2K periods. This center would have interfaces to all critical industry sectors, including electricity. The center would be able to coordinate timely information exchange between industries. The center might also be able to direct emergency response teams if that became appropriate."

In a later note:

"A retired general has been selected to head the national Y2K information center. NERC will coordinate with them from their information center. This area will require additional coordination effort to ensure a smooth working relationship."

These snips are taken from:

ftp://ftp.nerc.com/pub/sys/all_updl/docs/y2k/5-99-breakout-questions.pdf

ftp://ftp.nerc.com/pub/sys/all_updl/docs/y2k/4-21-conference-call-notes.pdf

ftp://ftp/nerc.com/pub/sys/all_updl/docs/y2k/3-25-conference-call-notes.pdf

-- Anonymous, May 27, 1999

Answers

Very good, as usual Bonnie. If you want to get really disturbed about what crinton has planned, check out the following sites on what he has got set up and running now, which includes plans to put crinton people into each factory and utility.

Check for the original document questionaire sent back in 1996 or 1997 to gather all the info. It is really interesting, probing all the weaknesses in each individual plant. They may have dropped it by now. I may have it on an old hard drive. It's scary.

http://www.pccip.gov/supporting.html http://www.pccip.gov/info.html http://www.pccip.gov/index.html http://www.ciao.gov/ http://www.ciao.gov/research.html#roadmap

Bob

-- Anonymous, May 29, 1999

Bonnie, Somehow this address didn't appear.

http://www.ciao.gov/

-- Anonymous, May 29, 1999