Late last year a cyberattack took down a large segment of the Ukrainian power grid, marking the first time that hackers anywhere in the world accomplished such a feat. Days later, in early January, North Korea claimed it had successfully tested a hydrogen bomb, an action that could put it one step closer to launching an EMP.
Is a cyberattack or EMP attack on the American power grid next? That’s the subject of this week’s edition of Off The Grid Radio as we talk to grid expert Peter Pry, the author of the new book Blackout Wars and the executive director of the EMP Task Force on National and Homeland Security.
Pry, who also served on the EMP Commission and the House Armed Services Committee, says a cyberattack or EMP attack could take down the grid for weeks or months. He also tells us:
- Why he believes North Korea may be telling the truth – and why American intelligence may be wrong.
- How a hydrogen bomb would make an EMP even more dangerous – and how North Korea already has the capability to deliver it.
- Why the attack on the Ukrainian grid should worry Americans, and how hackers half the world away could take down the U.S. grid, with no notice.
- What we can do to prepare for an attack on the grid.
If the grid were down for one year, Pry says, upwards of 90 percent of the population would die from starvation, lack of medical supplies and unrest.
Pry also shares his thoughts on the White House’s Space Weather Action Plan, and he tells us how we can pressure Congress to protect the grid. If you’re concerned about America’s future and the power grid, then this is one show you don’t want to miss!