Parts of Europe hit by massive power outage

On Monday, Spain and Portugal experienced a nationwide power outage, leaving millions without electricity. The blackout, which occurred around late morning, affected major airports like Madrid's Barajas and Lisbon's Humberto Delgado, causing flight cancellations and stranding passengers. Telecommunications were disrupted, leaving residents without mobile network access. Hospitals and metro systems were also impacted, with some surgeries canceled and trains stuck in tunnels. The cause of the outage is still under investigation.

“The war in Ukraine has shown us that attacks on power grids are not science fiction – they are possible and have led to multiple disruptions. That said, such networks are generally well protected and not easy to take down. In past cases, we’ve seen a range of attack types, from malware manipulating physical processes to destructive wiper malware designed to digitally disable entire office environments. These are viruses built to act like a digital hand grenade.

At this stage, very little is confirmed, and attacks on critical infrastructure at this scale remain rare. That’s why it's important to wait for official updates. In some cases, the fear of a cyberattack can itself be a tactic by adversaries to incite panic and confusion. Human error and technical failures without any cyber component remain possible explanations.”

by Dave Maasland,

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