Two public interest organizations are calling for privacy measures on smart meters that will collect data from households, which they say could infringe upon individual rights.

 

In a joint filing yesterday, the Center for Democracy & Technology (News - Alert) and the Electronic Frontier Foundation urged the California Public Utilities Commission to adopt rules to protect the privacy and security of consumers’ energy-usage information.

 

Ultimately, the organizations urged the California PUC to adopt comprehensive privacy standards for the collection, retention, use and disclosure of consumers’ household energy data. The Samuelson Law, Technology & Public Policy Clinic at UC Berkeley School of Law drafted the comments for CDT (News - Alert).

According to CDT officials, smart meters being installed now in California will collect 750 to 3,000 data points a month per household. This detailed energy usage data can indicate whether someone is at home or out, entertaining guests, or using particular appliances.  CDT officials said that marketers and others may seek such data.

 

“In the absence of clear rules, this potentially beneficial smart grid technology could mean yet another intrusion on private life,” said Jim Dempsey, vice president of San Francisco-based CDT. “The PUC should act now, before our privacy is eroded.”

 

The California PUC is conducting a rulemaking proceeding to consider setting policies, standards, and protocols to guide the development of the smart grid system. The stimulus law signed by President Obama in February 2009 included $4.5 billion to modernize the electric grid.