Edison Electric Institute
David Batz is Managing Director of Cyber and Infrastructure Security at the Edison Electric Institute. Former NARUC President Paul Kjellander, also former Idaho PUC President, is Senior Advisor at Public Utilities Fortnightly.
It seems as though everything everywhere is tied together by the internet, causing increased need for and interest in cybersecurity at electric utilities. That's why the Edison Electric Institute has experts who handle such matters for member utility companies.
Cybersecurity is a big topic, so Public Utilities Fortnightly discussed issues surrounding that generally and specifically with two specialists from EEI.
David Batz has followed developments in the cyber world for a long time and has a lot to say about that culture at electric utilities and how to manage risk. Bill Pfister knows all about cyber insurance and talks about its impact on utilities. This discussion tied together a lot on cyber risk mitigation, also important to system resiliency, and is not to be missed.
PUF's Paul Kjellander: You started with EEI in 2009. You've been around the utility sector for quite a while. What are you seeing as the evolution of cyber as it relates to the electric utility sector?
David Batz: In earlier times, cybersecurity was considered to be within the domain of information technology. In general, a lot of folks did not think much about it.
But those times are behind us. In today's world, cybersecurity is being treated with significant interest and concern.