Can someone more familiar with the technology explain how necessary it is for the inverter to be internet connected? This seems like the kind of cloud dependency that people on HN would usually be opposed to.
A small solar inverter doesn't need to be internet connected, but solar inverter app monitoring lets you track energy production, view real-time power flows, and check device status using a smartphone or tablet. So automaticaly you could get all the IoT security issues.
Large solar invertors at large solar plants muss be under remote controling of grid operators, to allow solar curtailment when the solar production exceeds electric demand or grid transmission could be overloaded. This is not specific to solar power plants, other kinds of power plants are also under control of grid operators.
With increased deployment of residential solar its possible that this controlling will be extented also to residential solar.
With sufficiently badly designed systems (lack of sufficient manual interlocks), it should also be possible to cause co-ordinated widespread fires and property damage or the like, with resulting loss of life.
There was a good grid generator demonstration years ago (aurora generator cyber attack), and most cheap inverters are likely even dumber than what was demonstrated there.
Likely? Probably not with current geopolitics.
Possible? Hard to say, but certainly unlikely to be completely impossible.
Security being the S in IoT and all, and most of these inverter stacks are pretty typical of IoT.
> A small solar inverter doesn't need to be internet connected, but solar inverter app monitoring lets you track energy production, view real-time power flows, and check device status using a smartphone or tablet
... over USB or Bluetooth. Internet is solely for convenience.
https://solar-assistant.io/
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/solarman-smart/id1469487897
If an attacker could control a significant portion of solar inverters in a solar dominated grid, he could cause an blackout, under right conditions.
More in presentations at CCC:
"How to cause blackout"
https://media.ccc.de/v/32c3-7323-wie_man_einen_blackout_veru...
"BlinkenCity: Radio-Controlling Street Lamps and Power Plants"
https://media.ccc.de/v/38c3-blinkencity-radio-controlling-st...
Large solar invertors at large solar plants muss be under remote controling of grid operators, to allow solar curtailment when the solar production exceeds electric demand or grid transmission could be overloaded. This is not specific to solar power plants, other kinds of power plants are also under control of grid operators.
With increased deployment of residential solar its possible that this controlling will be extented also to residential solar.