The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has issued an alert about Russian government-backed attempts at breaking into utility company computer systems.
While DHS would not confirm specific businesses targeted, a report by the New York Times last year found that Wolf Creek Nuclear Energy Corporation has been threatened.
Wolf Creek spokeswoman Jenny Hageman says they do not comment on security matters, but said the operation of their southeast Kansas nuclear plant has never been impacted by a cyber attack.
“Wolf Creek, like all nuclear power plants in the United States, are dedicated to keeping our corporate networks completely separate from the operational systems for our plants,” she said.
A spokesman for KCP&L, which has an ownership stake in Wolf Creek, says it’s also constantly warding against cyber attacks.
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Brian Grimmett is the energy and environment reporter for the Kansas News Service, a collaboration of KMUW, Kansas Public Radio and KCUR covering health, education and politics. Follow him on Twitter @briangrimmett.
To contact KMUW News or to send in a news tip, reach us at news@kmuw.org.
