ABSTRACT
Because single-family homes and many multiunit residential buildings operate on a one meter per home allocation, the granularity of consumption (and production) data merits discussion about the privacy risks associated with the use of and access to that data. The Green Button initiative leverages the purpose and use of smart meter data. The common data format lets application developers build one interface that will work with the energy usage data across all utilities that agree to participate in the Green Button program. This data is available in some states now, and a growing number of utilities are supporting this initiative. Each consumer’s electrical usage data belongs to that consumer, and consumers may opt to share their data with companies that offer information services or products. The local utility supporting Green Button is a custodian of this data. The investor-owned utilities follow the privacy and security mandates for this data as defined by their state regulatory agency.
