| Regulatory Discretion for COVID-19 Impacts | | https://rfirst.org/regulatory-discretion-for-covid-19-impacts | Regulatory Discretion for COVID-19 Impacts | | <span class="ms-rteFontSize-1" id="ms-rterangepaste-start"></span><p><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) announced that they are taking steps to ensure that operators of the bulk electric system can focus their resources on keeping people safe and the lights on during this unprecedented public health emergency. (See Full Announcement </span><a href="https://www.nerc.com/news/Headlines%20DL/FERC%20NERC%20031820%20final.pdf"><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1" style="text-decoration:underline;">here</span></a><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">.)</span></p><p><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">To that end, FERC and NERC are using regulatory discretion to consider the impact of the coronavirus outbreak in complying with Reliability Standards as follows:</span></p><ul style="list-style-type:disc;"><li><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1"><strong>Personnel Certification:</strong> The effects of the coronavirus will be considered an acceptable basis for non-compliance with obtaining and maintaining personnel certification, as required by PER-003-2, for the period of March 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020. <br> </span></li><li><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1"><strong>Standards involving Periodic Actions:</strong> The effects of the coronavirus will be considered an acceptable reason for case-by-case non-compliance with Reliability Standard requirements involving <strong>periodic actions</strong> that would have been taken between March 1, 2020 and July 31, 2020. Examples<em> </em>include timing requirements under PRC-005-6 and CIP-007-6 R2.</span></li></ul><p><strong class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Entity Instructions</strong></p><p><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">In a case of delay in compliance activities under either of the two scenarios above (PER-003-2 or Standards involving periodic actions), entities must:</span></p><ul style="list-style-type:disc;"><li><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Notify ReliabilityFirst of their exception request using ReliabilityFirst's Exception Request Form, available <a href="/ProgramAreas/Enforcement/Resources/Enforcement%20Resources%20Library/2020%20Exception%20Request%20Form.docx"><span lang="EN" style="text-decoration:underline;">here</span></a>. Follow the submittal instructions contained within the form. Your Enforcement Case Manager will work with you in processing the request.</span></li><li><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Be prepared to communicate and document the following information. </span></li><ul style="list-style-type:circle;"><li><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">What specific Standard/Requirement is at issue?</span></li><li><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">What circumstances exist at your entity relating to COVID-19 that will prevent the compliance activity from being completed on-time?</span></li><li><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Are there interim mitigating activities you are putting in place?</span></li><li><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">What actions will you need to take to get back into compliance, and when do you anticipate that these will be complete?</span></li></ul></ul><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1"></span><p><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Thank you for your dedication to ensuring the health and safety of your employees, your communities, and the continued reliability and security of the ReliabilityFirst Region.</span><br class="ms-rteFontSize-1"><br class="ms-rteFontSize-1"><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">If you have other questions or concerns regarding the coronavirus outbreak that are not related to this regulatory discretion, please use the Contact Us page located </span><a href="/Pages/Contact%20Us.aspx"><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1" style="text-decoration:underline;">here</span></a><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">. Choose “COVID-19" as the Area and “Updates - COVID-19" as the Topic.</span></p> | aspx | 0x010100C568DB52D9D0A14D9B2FDCC96666E9F2007948130EC3DB064584E219954237AF3900242457EFB8B24247815D688C526CD44D0093A70D41E916EA45B5172B8FDD4B3EFA00F578CE634144CA46817471FA34146B93 | | | 2020-03-24T04:00:00.0000000Z |
| ReliabilityFirst Efforts to Mitigate Coronavirus Impacts | | https://rfirst.org/reliabilityfirst-efforts-to-mitigate-coronavirus-impacts | ReliabilityFirst Efforts to Mitigate Coronavirus Impacts | | <p><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">ReliabilityFirst (RF) continues to actively monitor the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, including information from the World Health Organization (WHO) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In addition to upholding our mission to ensure the reliability and security of the electric grid, our top priority is the health and safety of all personnel at RF, our entities, stakeholders, and colleagues across the ERO Enterprise. Due to the dynamic nature of the situation, we will continually reassess our plans and precautionary measures on an ongoing basis.</span></p><p><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Out of an abundance of caution, RF leadership has decided to institute our business continuity plan, which includes the closure of RF offices until further notice. This includes the step of switching the following in-person meetings to be conducted via WebEx/conference call:</span></p><ul style="list-style-type:disc;"><ul style="list-style-type:disc;"><li><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Board Committee Meetings (Compliance; Finance and Audit; Nominating and Governance) on March 18 in Cleveland, OH</span></li><li><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Board of Directors Meeting on March 19 in Cleveland, OH</span></li><li><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Reliability Committee Meeting on April 15 in Cleveland, OH</span></li><li><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Protection Subcommittee Meeting on April 8-9 in Cleveland, OH</span></li><li><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">RF Annual Spring Reliability and CIP Workshop on April 21-23 in Detroit, MI</span></li></ul></ul><p><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Guidance on pending audits and any impacts on Compliance is forthcoming, and your cooperation and flexibility are appreciated.</span></p><p><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">As industry-wide collaboration efforts to mitigate the potential impacts of COVID-19 continue, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) has taken on a number of initiatives to inform stakeholders and protect the health of its workforce. </span></p><p><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">NERC is active with the Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council (ESCC)* and participates in joint, biweekly ESCC calls with key government partners (Department of Energy, Department of Homeland Security, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Department of Health and Human Services) in addressing COVID-19. This effort began last week to provide general situational awareness and share best practices. As part of that effort, NERC worked with trade organizations and other entities to help develop and distribute this guidance document designed to support industry leaders in making informed, localized decisions in response to this evolving global health emergency. </span></p><p><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">The document – </span><a href="https://images.magnetmail.net/documents/clients/EEI_/2020-03/ovodrzgn.2mp/ESCC_Coronovirus_Resource_Guide_031020.pdf"><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1" style="text-decoration:underline;">Assessing and Mitigating the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19)</span></a><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1"> – is posted on the ESCC website, the E-ISAC portal, and shared with other sectors and government partners. The guide will evolve as additional information and recommended practices are identified.</span></p><p><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Questions on the guidance document should be directed to secretariat@electricitysubsector.org.</span></p><p><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1"><em>*Background on the ESCC: The CEO-led Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council (ESCC) serves as the principal liaison between the federal government and the electric power industry, with the mission of coordinating efforts to prepare for, and respond to, national-level disasters or threats to critical infrastructure. The ESCC focuses on actions and strategies that help protect the energy grid, prevent various threats from disrupting electricity service, and develop capabilities that help the sector quickly respond and recover when major incidents impact the grid</em>.</span></p> | aspx | 0x010100C568DB52D9D0A14D9B2FDCC96666E9F2007948130EC3DB064584E219954237AF3900242457EFB8B24247815D688C526CD44D0093A70D41E916EA45B5172B8FDD4B3EFA00F578CE634144CA46817471FA34146B93 | | | 2020-03-13T04:00:00.0000000Z |
| Align Project | | https://rfirst.org/align-project | Align Project | | <p><span class="ms-rteThemeForeColor-2-0 ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-1" style="">Release 1 Update and FAQ. See information <a href="/ProgramAreas/Enforcement/Resources/Enforcement%20Resources%20Library/Align%20Release%201%20Update%20and%20FAQs.pdf">here</a>.</span></p> | aspx | 0x010100C568DB52D9D0A14D9B2FDCC96666E9F2007948130EC3DB064584E219954237AF3900242457EFB8B24247815D688C526CD44D0093A70D41E916EA45B5172B8FDD4B3EFA00F578CE634144CA46817471FA34146B93 | | | 2019-09-05T04:00:00.0000000Z |
| Released the FERC and NERC Release Report on January 2018 Extreme Cold Weather Event | | https://rfirst.org/released-the-ferc-and-nerc-release-report-on-january-2018-extreme-cold-weather-event | Released the FERC and NERC Release Report on January 2018 Extreme Cold Weather Event | | <font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin:0in 0in 8pt;text-align:justify;"><font size="3"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"></font><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteThemeForeColor-2-0"></span></font> </p><p style="margin:0in 0in 8pt;text-align:justify;"><font size="3"><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteThemeForeColor-2-0">ReliabilityFirst was pleased to be a part of the team and
looks forward to continuing to work collaboratively to ensure cold weather
preparedness. </span></font></p><div style="text-align:justify;"><font class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteThemeForeColor-2-0" size="3">
</font></div><p style="margin:0in 0in 0pt;text-align:justify;line-height:normal;"><font class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteThemeForeColor-2-0" size="3"><strong>Click here for:</strong> <em><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><span style="font-style:normal;text-decoration:underline;"><a href="https://www.nerc.com/pa/rrm/ea/Documents/South_Central_Cold_Weather_Event_FERC-NERC-Report_20190718.pdf"><em class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteThemeForeColor-2-0" style="text-decoration:underline;">South Central U.S. Cold Weather Event of January 17, 2018
Joint Report</em></a></span></span></em></font></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin:0in 0in 8pt;"><span style="color:#1f497d;"><font face="Calibri" size="3"> </font></span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font> | aspx | 0x010100C568DB52D9D0A14D9B2FDCC96666E9F2007948130EC3DB064584E219954237AF3900242457EFB8B24247815D688C526CD44D0093A70D41E916EA45B5172B8FDD4B3EFA00F578CE634144CA46817471FA34146B93 | | | 2019-07-29T04:00:00.0000000Z |
| Align Project Update | | https://rfirst.org/align-project-update | Align Project Update | | <p style="text-align:justify;"><strong class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Development and Training Update</strong></p><p style="text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">The ERO Project Team is continuing to develop and test Release 1 of the Align Tool. Current work includes addressing must-have features identified during the May 2019 User Acceptance Testing by Regional Entity Staff. With this in mind, the development and testing phases of the project will require a 6-8 week extension that will consume most of the original training window scheduled for July, August, and early September. <strong>As a result, Regional Staff and Registered Entity training sessions will be rescheduled after September 15, 2019.</strong> ReliabilityFirst will continue to work closely with the ERO Project Team, and provide updates to our stakeholders on a revised schedule and registrations for both the Regional Staff and Registered Entity Align training sessions.</span></p><p style="text-align:justify;"><strong class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Deployment Update</strong></p><p style="text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1">Due to the shift in dates for the development and training phases, the ERO Project Team and Steering Committee are considering a staged approach to the Align Tool Release 1 deployment. The approach would target the end of September for the first go-live with one or two Regions and have the remaining Regions live by the end of October. The Project Team and leadership are considering this option, but have not made any definitive decisions. The Steering Committee is convening in mid-July to further discuss and evaluate deployment options, and select an approach that ensures a successful launch. We will provide an update following the Steering Committee meeting. In the meantime, if you have any questions or concerns, please contact ReliabilityFirst Align Project Change Agent, <a href="mailto:ray.sefchik@rfirst.org">Ray Sefchik</a>.</span></p> | aspx | 0x010100C568DB52D9D0A14D9B2FDCC96666E9F2007948130EC3DB064584E219954237AF3900242457EFB8B24247815D688C526CD44D0093A70D41E916EA45B5172B8FDD4B3EFA00F578CE634144CA46817471FA34146B93 | | | 2019-06-26T04:00:00.0000000Z |
| Align Registered Entity Newsletter | | https://rfirst.org/align-registered-entity-newsletter | Align Registered Entity Newsletter | | <font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
<font class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-1" color="#000000">ReliabilityFirst is happy to share
the latest <strong><em>Align Registered Entity Newsletter, to read click <a href="/about/Tools%20Portal%20Library/2019%20May%20Align%20Registered%20Entity%20Newsletter.pdf">here</a></em></strong>. This issue
provides information on the project goals and process improvements, Release 1
functionality, training dates with registration information, and an Align FAQs
link. Please contact ReliabilityFirst Align project change agent, <a href="mailto:ray.sefchik@rfirst.org">Ray Sefchik</a> at </font><a><font class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-1" color="#000000">ray.sefchik@rfirst.org</font></a><font class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-1" color="#000000"> with any
questions.</font></font><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font> | aspx | 0x010100C568DB52D9D0A14D9B2FDCC96666E9F2007948130EC3DB064584E219954237AF3900242457EFB8B24247815D688C526CD44D0093A70D41E916EA45B5172B8FDD4B3EFA00F578CE634144CA46817471FA34146B93 | | | 2019-05-07T04:00:00.0000000Z |
| 2018 Annual Report | | https://rfirst.org/2018-annual-report | 2018 Annual Report | | <font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin:0in 0in 0pt;text-align:justify;"><strong class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-1"><em><font color="#000000">ReliabilityFirst
is proud to release its </font><span style="color:#c00000;">2018 Annual Report</span><font color="#000000">!</font></em></strong></p><p style="margin:0in 0in 0pt;text-align:justify;"><strong><em><font color="#000000"></font></em></strong> </p><div style="text-align:justify;"><font class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-1" color="#000000">
<em class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-1"><font color="#000000">The
2018 Annual Report describes ReliabilityFirst’s activities in:(1) Risk
Identification (identifying and prioritizing risks in our footprint), (2) Risk
Mitigation (working with entities to ensure the mitigation of risks), and (3)
Risk Communication (communicating risks and mitigation strategies to the ERO
Enterprise, across our footprint, and/or to targeted entities). The
Annual Report also highlights ReliabilityFirst's 2018 Innovation Awards and
Retreat, the 2018 CIP Themes Report, and provides trending and metrics on the
latest risks and compliance challenges facing the industry. </font></em></font></div><div style="text-align:justify;"><font class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-1" color="#000000">
</font> </div><div style="text-align:justify;"><font class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-1" color="#000000">
</font><em class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-1"><font color="#000000">We
hope you enjoy the 2018 Annual Report and welcome your feedback.</font></em></div><div style="text-align:justify;"><font class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-1" color="#000000">
</font> </div><div style="text-align:justify;"><font class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-1" color="#000000">
</font><strong class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-1"><em><span style="color:#c00000;"><a href="/about/publicreports/Public%20Reports/2018%20Annual%20Report.pdf"><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-1" style="color:#c00000;text-decoration:none;"><span style="text-decoration:underline;">Click here to
access the Annual Report</span></span></a></span></em></strong></div> | aspx | 0x010100C568DB52D9D0A14D9B2FDCC96666E9F2007948130EC3DB064584E219954237AF3900242457EFB8B24247815D688C526CD44D0093A70D41E916EA45B5172B8FDD4B3EFA00F578CE634144CA46817471FA34146B93 | | | 2019-04-10T04:00:00.0000000Z |
| RF Launches New Human Performance Knowledge Center Page | | https://rfirst.org/rf-launches-new-human-performance-knowledge-center-page | RF Launches New Human Performance Knowledge Center Page | | <font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin:0in 0in 0pt;text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1" style="color:#333333;font-family:"tahoma",sans-serif;">Human performance is a key component in the overall operation,
management, and maintenance of the grid. RF has launched a new knowledge center
page focused on human performance issues, to share lessons learned and best
practices. This knowledge center page will be regularly updated as new
resources become available. </span></p><div style="text-align:justify;"><font class="ms-rteFontSize-1" color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><p style="margin:0in 0in 0pt;text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1" style="color:#333333;font-family:"tahoma",sans-serif;"> </span></p><div style="text-align:justify;"><font class="ms-rteFontSize-1" color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><p style="margin:0in 0in 0pt;text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1" style="color:#333333;font-family:"tahoma",sans-serif;">Visit the human performance knowledge center page <a href="/KnowledgeCenter/Risk%20Analysis/HP"><span class="ms-rteFontSize-1" style="text-decoration:underline;"><font color="#0563c1">here</font></span></a>. </span></p><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font> | aspx | 0x010100C568DB52D9D0A14D9B2FDCC96666E9F2007948130EC3DB064584E219954237AF3900242457EFB8B24247815D688C526CD44D0093A70D41E916EA45B5172B8FDD4B3EFA00F578CE634144CA46817471FA34146B93 | | | 2019-03-20T04:00:00.0000000Z |
| EMS: Risk and Mitigations | | https://rfirst.org/ems-risk-and-mitigations | EMS: Risk and Mitigations | | <p style="text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">RF had the pleasure of substantially contributing to the recently published NERC Operating Committee Reference Document titled </span><a href="https://www.nerc.com/comm/OC/ReferenceDocumentsDL/Risks_and_Mitigations_for_Losing_EMS_Functions_Reference_Document_20171212.pdf"><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">Risks and Mitigations </span></a><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">for Losing EMS Functions. </span></p><p style="text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">Developed by the EMS Working Group (EMSWG), this document discusses the risk associated with losing Energy Management System (EMS) functions and shares mitigation strategies used to reduce these risk when operators lose situational awareness tools. The purpose of this Reference Document is to:</span></p><ul style="text-align:justify;"><li><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">identify and discuss the risk of losing EMS functions, </span></li><li><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">analyze the causes of EMS events reported through the ERO Event Analysis Process (EAP), and </span></li><li><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">share mitigation strategies to reduce these risks to EMS reliability. </span></li></ul><p style="text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">The paper begins with a short summary of “What is an EMS and why is it important?” It defines and explains the components of an EMS system including but not limited to State Estimation (SE), Contingency Analysis (CA), and Inter Control Center Protocol (ICCP). Figures 1 and 2 provide illustrations showing a simplified EMS configuration and the inter-dependencies among EMS applications.</span></p><p style="text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">The paper details the risks associated with losing EMS functions. The most impactful EMS risk is the loss of System Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA). Without SCADA, the operators do not have the ability to remotely operate devices, nor do they have the metered data points from the RTUs to monitor system stability. Different challenges are presented for the loss of SE, CA, or ICCP such as the inability to determine non-metered data points, the impact of the worst credible contingency, and data from neighboring systems. Even though the loss of SCADA had the highest number of occurrences over the four years analyzed, the RF region is seeing a significant trend of fewer SCADA outages, but a rise of more SE outages.</span></p><p> <img alt="2018 EMS Page 8.png" src="/about/Newsroom/PublishingImages/Pages/Forms/EditForm/2018%20EMS%20Page%208.png" style="margin:5px;width:661px;" /></p><p style="text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">The paper goes on to analyze the underlying reasons for these EMS outages. The EAP process includes cause coding to determine the root and contributing causes of the EMS events. Four underlying categories were developed:</span></p><ul style="text-align:justify;"><li><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">Software failures,</span></li><li><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">Communication failures,</span></li><li><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">Facility outages, and</span></li><li><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">Maintenance outages<br></span></li></ul><p style="text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">These four categories are used to explain that there are different reasons for EMS outages, each involving different mitigating strategies. If every outage was a software failure, the industry could point at the vendors and demand more resilient platforms, or work internally through their own IT department to ensure that the architecture for their EMS system (including databases and memory allocations) is suitable for their needs. However, EMS outages have different causes. Some outages are due to external modeling issues, while other outages reveal settings that need to be fine-tuned for convergence. Sometimes the loss of a communications path or supply power to the control center (or data center) results in an EMS outage. In other cases, a system upgrade or patch disables EMS functionality. <br>Whatever the reason, all of these events are analyzed through the Events Analysis Process (EAP) and cause-coded. During the cause-coding process, the entities provide details on the corrective actions and mitigation strategies to address the root and contributing causes (e.g., software upgrades, additional training, verifying the model, enhancing the loss of data procedure, or calibrating settings with the help of the vendor).</span></p><p style="text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">Mitigation strategies, specifically detective and corrective controls are discussed to explain how the loss of EMS functions has not directly led to the loss of generation, transmission lines, or customer load. Possibly the biggest change from the early advent of EMS systems has been the overlapping coverage of situational awareness. Reliability Coordinators and neighboring Transmission Operators and Balancing Authorities work together to help monitor member and neighboring systems during the loss of EMS functionality. The paper highlights ten good-utility practices including manning substations and implementing conservative operations that help maintain reliability while EMS systems are being repaired. </span></p><p style="text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1">Finally, the reference document highlights the NERC Monitoring and Situational Awareness Conference where industry gathers annually to provide awareness of current and emerging EMS issues, exchange best practices, and collaborate with the vendors. Past Lessons Learned from the EAP are shared, plus entities highlight some of their own best practices for EMS resiliency. </span></p> | aspx | 0x010100C568DB52D9D0A14D9B2FDCC96666E9F2007948130EC3DB064584E219954237AF3900242457EFB8B24247815D688C526CD44D0093A70D41E916EA45B5172B8FDD4B3EFA00F578CE634144CA46817471FA34146B93 | | | 2018-05-25T04:00:00.0000000Z |
| 2018 CIP Themes and Lessons Learned | | https://rfirst.org/2018-themes-and-lessons-learned | 2018 CIP Themes and Lessons Learned | | <font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p style="margin:6pt 0in 0pt;text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-2"><font color="#000000">Despite efforts to stay ahead of security threats,
entities are sometimes held back by deficiencies or limitations in their
corporate structure, culture, or resources. RF, WECC, and SERC have been
working together to analyze the data in all three Regions around potential
themes in these deficiencies and limitations. </font></span></p><div style="text-align:justify;"><font class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-2" color="#000000">
</font> </div><p style="margin:6pt 0in 0pt;text-align:justify;"><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-2"><font color="#000000">The Regions, in coordination with NERC and multiple
stakeholders from the Regions, are releasing a joint report identifying the
themes and possible resolutions in order to help drive entities to continue to
assess and strengthen their CIP programs and thus mitigate security
risks. The four themes the Regions have identified are:</font></span></p><font class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-2" color="#000000">
</font><ul><li><div style="margin:0in 0.5in 0pt 35.25pt;line-height:normal;text-indent:-0.25in;"><span class="ms-rteThemeForeColor-2-4 ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-2">disassociation between compliance and security; </span></div></li><font class="ms-rteThemeForeColor-2-4 ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-2"></font><li><div style="margin:0in 0.5in 0pt 35.25pt;line-height:normal;text-indent:-0.25in;"><span class="ms-rteThemeForeColor-2-4 ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-2">development of organizational silos; </span></div></li><font class="ms-rteThemeForeColor-2-4 ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-2"></font><li><div style="margin:0in 0.5in 0pt 35.25pt;line-height:normal;text-indent:-0.25in;"><span class="ms-rteThemeForeColor-2-4 ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-2">lack of awareness of an entity’s needs or deficiencies; and</span></div></li><font class="ms-rteThemeForeColor-2-4 ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-2"></font><li><div style="margin:0in 0.5in 0pt 35.25pt;line-height:normal;text-indent:-0.25in;"><span class="ms-rteThemeForeColor-2-4 ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-2">inadequate tools or
ineffective use of tools.</span></div></li></ul><p><span class="ms-rteFontSize-2">Click </span><a href="https://www.rfirst.org/about/publicreports/Public%20Reports/2018%20CIP%20Themes%20and%20Lessons%20Learned.pdf"><span class="ms-rteFontSize-2">here </span></a><span class="ms-rteFontSize-2">to view the full report.</span></p><font class="ms-rteFontFace-1" color="#000000" size="3">
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</font> | aspx | 0x010100C568DB52D9D0A14D9B2FDCC96666E9F2007948130EC3DB064584E219954237AF3900242457EFB8B24247815D688C526CD44D0093A70D41E916EA45B5172B8FDD4B3EFA00F578CE634144CA46817471FA34146B93 | | | 2018-04-12T04:00:00.0000000Z |