Max-flow min-cut for power system security index computation

The security index problem for false data injection attacks on power systems is considered. In particular, the problem is to find the minimum cost set of bus injection meters and line flow meters that an attacker can seize so as to execute a false data injection. A polynomial-time algorithm is provided to solve this problem in certain settings, based on the principle of max-flow min-cut. The security index problem is shown to be equivalent to a min-cut problem, and that this problem can be solved using a generalization of the classic max-flow min-cut algorithm in which flows are successively augmented until doing so is no longer possible.