A federal indictment in the case alleges that a handwritten list of transformers, substations, and other components of the power grid in the northwest was discovered among one of the defendant’s possessions. The suspects were charged with conspiracy to damage and destroy by fire and explosive and with possession of unregistered firearms. The US national electric grid is large and diverse — composed of more than 6,400 power plants, 55,000 substations and 450,000 miles of high-voltage transmission lines serviced by 3,000 companies, the memo notes. The DHS intelligence brief found that use of encrypted messaging platforms and simple tactics will likely make these attacks difficult to detect. Some domestic extremists believe that largely remote and dispersed nature of the electric grid “will allow sufficient time to conduct an attack while evading detection by law enforcement,” according to a body of DHS, state, and media reporting.

Source: CNN January 26, 2022 00:48 UTC