Convergence of Mobility and Electricity
The escalating demand for electricity worldwide[1] and intermittency of renewables necessitates the integration of new, flexible power sources into grids globally[2]. Electric vehicles (EVs) are driving the growth in energy consumption and can also be a source of electricity. They are slowly but surely merging the electricity and the mobility sectors â a phenomenon known as âsector couplingâ.[3] Once primarily a concept for energy geeks, sector coupling is now becoming a reality, creating significant opportunities. However, this convergence also introduces risks â EVs and their charging networks become integral part of the critical energy infrastructure which raises energy security and even national security concerns.[4]
Energy Use Cases for EVs
Given that EVs possess significant energy storage capabilities and remain parked for around 95% of the day, they can function as a highly flexible, smaller-scale distributed energy resources (DER). They are capable of supporting a variety of interesting energy use cases, including:[5]
- enhancing grid stability through mechanisms like peak shaving, frequency response, and demand/response programs;
- providing cost-effective power during peaks and outages;[6]
- monetizing flexibility or surplus energy for EV owner via EV-VPP integration.
The EV energy consumption and its growth is also significant (almost 4x in the US from 2020 to 2024). An EV can add up to one half or more of the average homeâs total daily electricity consumption.
EVs in the VPP
A key to unlocking value lies in integrating EVs into Virtual Power Plants (VPPs).[7] A VPP is a network of distributed energy assets connected digitally and managed by a centralized system. The VPP is cloud-based, simulating a power plant and managing utility-scale power flows (e.g. charging, discharging and aggregation decisions for a fleet of EVs).[8] Furthermore, VPPs facilitate monetization via connecting EVs to energy markets (e.g. for both electricity and grid balancing services). With the significant growth of EVs across many regions, they emerge as a key asset of interest for the VPP community. As artificial intelligence (AI) technology advances, the value potential to unlock from an EV-VPP integration can even be greater.[9]
While this transformation promises significant benefits, vehicle-to-grid integration also introduces a complex set of digital security risks and data governance challenges that must be addressed to safeguard the integrity of power systems and data.
EVs in the VPP Architecture
From a systems engineering standpoint, EVs in VPPs are
- networked edge nodes with energy storage capabilities,
- interfaced via smart charging systems (AC or DC), often bi-directional (V2G),
- controlled via aggregator platforms over cloud APIs and local communication protocols (e.g. OCPP, ISO 15118).
While this architecture facilitates real-time coordination, it necessitates substantial data exchange between devices and cloud platforms and introduces multi-stakeholder ecosystems involving OEMs, charging network operators, energy suppliers, grid operators, VPP operators, and technology vendors. This complexity makes data integrity, secure identity management, and trust orchestration crucial.
Digital Security Threat Vectors
These are the key attack surfaces and security vulnerabilities in the EV-VPP integration:
Unauthorized Access and Remote Control: Malicious actors could gain control over EV charging infrastructure or the vehicle itself. This could lead to data tampering, malware injection, or manipulation of grid load (e.g. causing sudden surges or drops).
Data Privacy and Governance Violations: EVs transmit real-time location, usage patterns, energy transactions, and personal user data. This interconnectedness creates a potential for breaches of privacy laws like GDPR. Furthermore, the flow of user, energy, and telemetry data among various stakeholders introduces vulnerabilities. The absence of robust encryption and strict access controls jeopardizes both data sovereignty and privacy.
Compromised Aggregator/VPP Platforms: The VPP platform that manages EVs is a high-value target. A breach could result in mass deactivation, fake demand signals, or ransomware attacks crippling energy markets or causing blackouts.
Man-in-the-Middle Attacks: Communications between EVs, charging stations, and VPPs are vulnerable to interception. Attackers could inject false data or commands, undermining grid stability. Attacks against protocols like OCPP (Open Charge Point Protocol) that lack strong encryption/authentication are likely.
Supply Chain Vulnerabilities: EV software, charging hardware, and third-party VPP services may come from various vendors. Each introduces a point of failure.
Risk Mitigation via Zero-Trust Approaches
To reduce these risks, establishing zero-trust data environments is essential. These environments enable secure data interoperability, ensure data provenance, and maintain control across all involved parties.
Interoperability and security standards, exemplified by TEIA (https://www.trusted-energy.org), provide concrete implementation guidance and facilitate creating secure data and device interoperability throughout EV ecosystems. [10] Zero-trust technologies - like Intertrustâs XPN (Explicit Private Networking) - are readily available and can enable the quick implementation of vital security measures.
đ§ Key Digital Capabilities Relevant
The following digital capabilities must be implemented in EV-VPP integration efforts:
Data Encryption and Trusted Data Zones: Use end-to-end encryption and policy-controlled trusted data zones to protect sensitive data (e.g. telemetry, user identity, energy transactions) at rest, in motion, and in use (e.g. following the TEIA compliance and robustness rules).
Device Identity and Secure Key Management: Provide a secure identity and credentialing framework for all ecosystem participants: EVs, chargers, aggregators, utilities. This protects against spoofed devices or rogue firmware updates via cryptographic attestation.
Tamper-Proof Audit Trails: Transactions should be immutable and logged. This helps with forensics, compliance (e.g., GDPR, NIS2), and operational visibility.
Complement Existing Standards: Be protocol-agnostic and layer over existing systems using OCPP, OCSP, IEEE2030.5. Facilitate trusted data interoperability across legacy and modern systems, critical in transitional energy markets.
Conclusion: Balancing Innovation with Risk
EVs integrated into VPPs form a cornerstone of the smart, flexible energy system of the future. They also introduce real-time, high-stakes security challenges. An infrastructure-level trust fabric is needed to enable secure orchestration. By embedding identity, policy enforcement, and encryption into the data layer, VPPs can scale securely. Industry collaborations like TEIA must evolve alongside technology to ensure secure deployments.
[1] Some research suggests even a 2x or 3x increase in demand for electricity until 2050 (source: McKinsey)
[2] The US will need to add enough capacity to serve approx. 200 GW of peak demand by 2030 (source: DoE)
[3] Sector coupling is the integration of electrical energy, mobility and heating/cooling to optimize energy use and decarbonization
[4] https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/data-cyber-security-threats-electric-mobility-charging-kolb-rqgzc/
[5] Mustafa Ä°nci, Murat Mustafa Savrun, ĂzgĂŒr Ăelik, Integrating electric vehicles as virtual power plants: A comprehensive review on vehicle-to-grid (V2G) concepts, interface topologies, marketing and future prospects, Journal of Energy Storage, Volume 55, Part B, 2022
[6] If embedded into a VPP, the cost could be roughly half the net cost to a utility versus alternatives (source: DoE)
[7] Choi, Seungryong & Cho, Keuntae. (2025). A Scenario-Based Approach to Using Electric Vehicle Batteries in Virtual Power Plants: Insights from Environmental, Social, and Governance and Monte Carlo Simulations. Sustainability. https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/7/3224
[8] For the US, the Department of Energy assumes around 30-60 GW of VPP capacity on the grid for the last years. https://www.energy.gov/lpo/virtual-power-plants-projects
[9] https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/powering-future-choosing-right-ai-virtual-power-plants-kolb-cofae/