An internal audit by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) found that almost one third of the agency’s cybersecurity experts are very close to the retirement age, which could result in a massive shortage of qualified staff by the end of fiscal 2020, even though the cyber threat to nuclear facilities is only increasing.
The audit report[pdf] warns that “if staffing levels and skill sets do not align with cybersecurity inspection workload requirements, NRC’s ability to adapt to a dynamic threat environment and detect problems with [nuclear power plants’] cyber security programs could be compromised.” The NRC is providing cybersecurity training to its inspectors, but these efforts are undermined by budget limitations.
Read more: Nuclear Energy Regulators Need to Bring on More Cyber Experts, Watchdog Says
