# Analysis of Cryptographic Algorithms to Improve Cybersecurity in the Industrial Electrical Sector
## 1 Introduction  
Technological fields have evolved exponentially in recent decades. In the area of electrical power systems (EPSs), the basic structure of the electricity network was maintained for more than 80 years without significant changes [1]. Less than two decades ago, the old substations, automated through point-to-point copper connections, were migrating towards fiber optic communication networks through Ethernet LAN networks and also through WAN networks for communication between distant substations. Fiber optic communications use an infrastructure made up of network equipment, such as routers, switches, servers, etc. This technology is commonly called ICT (information communication technology). When ICT is applied to any electrical power system, the concept of a \"smart grid\" is born. IEC61850 [2] is an international standard which defines different communication protocols between various field equipment located in automated substations. It was developed by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) in 2003 with the intention of modernizing and optimizing the automation of substations so that they are suitable for the energy demands of the 21 st century. Furthermore, to achieve interoperability between hardware from different suppliers, different standardized communication protocols weredeveloped, preventing each supplier from having their internal protocols and causing any incompatibility between equipment. The communication protocols of the IEC61850 standard define how information is exchanged between the different levels of automation within the substation. The information from field-level equipment, such as switches, disconnectors, and transformers, is digitized through devices called merging units [3]. The exchange of information in IEC61850 is subject to demanding latency times that must be met. The design of the different functions and equipment within the substation is object-oriented, which means that each element or function is described in a well-defined way to achieve the desired interoperability between hardware from different vendors. IEC61850 has the ability to report many relevant data and much information almost instantly. Thanks to these qualities, its object-oriented design approach, and its interoperability features, IEC61850 has become by far the most popular standard for the automation of electrical energy services and not only for substation automation systems, for which it was invented, but also for other areas of smart network communication such as those existing in electric vehicles (EVs) [4]. However, these great qualities and attributes of the IEC61850 standard are diminished due to the vulnerabilities to cyber attacks that originate when using standardized communication protocols that use equipment such as LAN switches and routers that can be exposed to a public network such as the Internet. Standardized semantics make it much easier for a cyber attacker to launch different types of attacks that can be catastrophic for the operation of the substation [5; 6]. This is why various types of attacks have been carried out on these systems, which have generated considerable operational, economic, and even human losses [7]. The paradigm that cybersecurity problems would not affect electrical power systems had to change. In 2007, WG15 launched the IEC62351 standard, which complements the IEC61850 standard and other standards under the jurisdiction of TC57 by proposing different cybersecurity methodologies using cryptographic algorithms [8]. IEC62351 has successfully prevented different attacks on the IEC61850 communication protocols [9]. The investigative work requires the development of different IEC61850 communication models, their implementation in a laboratory environment, the exchange of real information using the communication protocols of the standard, and observing the communication performance to study the impact on the operation of the electrical power system.