Update on Smart Meter Refusals for ComEd Customers

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

Background

Back about ten years ago, Illinois passed legislation for a “Smart Grid Advanced Metering Infrastructure Deployment Plan.”  This legislation required ComEd to deploy advanced metering (“smart meters”) for all of its electric customers.

As opposition to smart meters grew for a variety of reasons, the utility company developed a program to allow customers to defer installation at a cost of $21.53 per month for manual reading of the meter.  The ultimate goal was to coax all customers to eventually accept a smart meter or potentially face disconnection at some point down the road.  In past filings with the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC), the “sunset date” for the deferral program was to be June 30, 2022.

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Naperville to Implement “Smart” Water Meters in 2021

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

Naperville, IL – The City of Naperville has announced final plans to install wireless transmitters for the City’s 43,500 water meters.  The City has named the initiative as “the Water 2.0 project.”  The City has approved contracts with project contractor Core & Main which will be working with partners Sensus and VEPO.  Throughout 2021, VEPO will be visiting customer homes and businesses to install a meter interface unit.

City residents wanting to avoid installation of the wireless transmitters can do so by applying through a web portal interface at https://www.naperville.il.us/nextgenwater.  Go to the bottom of the webpage and click where it says “Opt out of the Water 2.0 project to continue receiving manual water meter readings … Click Here to Apply.”

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Hacking a Smart Meter and Killing the Grid

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

Nick Hunn of Creative Connectivity published an article this month entitled, “How to Hack a Smart Meter and Kill the Grid … And then all the lights went out.” [1]

Hunn says his new article is one he “would have preferred not to write” but felt obligated to issue a formal warning before “the lights go out.”

Nick Hunn is more convinced than ever that evidence now exists that rogue chips may be embedded into electronic circuit boards during the manufacturing process, such as those contained within utility smart meters.  Smart meters can be considered high value targets for hackers due to the existence of the “remote disconnect” feature included as an option for most smart meters deployed today. Continue reading

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Recent Court Ruling on Smart Meter Privacy Invasions Was Based on False Premise of “Benefits”

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions, Updated October 2, 2018

Key Article Points

  • The recent court ruling allowing smart meter privacy invasions was based on a false premise of “benefits.”
  • Smart meters do not reduce costs, do not result in cheaper power, do not encourage energy efficiency, and do not increase grid stability.
  • Smart meters do not provide a net public benefit and do not promote the public interest.
  • Since smart meters do not provide a net public benefit or promote the public interest, the Court ruling was in error, and smart meters do therefore represent an “illegal search.”

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Security Risks and Technology Obsolescence Reduce Smart Meter Expected Lifetimes

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions, Updated October 15, 2018

Key Article Points:

  • Meter manufacturers and most utility companies attempting to justify large-scale smart meter deployments claim useful life values in the range of 15 to 20 years.
  • Those individuals and groups who acknowledge that electronic equipment lifetimes are heavily influenced by security issues and technology obsolescence typically forecast much shorter useful lifetimes for smart meters, anywhere from 5 to 15 years with 10 years being a good median value.
  • Smart meter useful life values (as used by most utility companies) are based solely on classical reliability analysis that models mechanical failure rates induced by accelerated life testing.  These tests are normally conducted by the meter manufacturers themselves.
  • Classical mortality factors and technology obsolescence determine the actual useful life of a smart meter, and they do so simultaneously.  Therefore, both should be taken into account.  Ignoring technology obsolescence and only considering classical failure rates will result in a gross overstatement of the useful life of a smart meter.
  • On balance, the information presented in this article supports the conclusion that the useful life of a utility smart electric meter should not be considered to exceed 10 years.  Utility companies planning to deploy smart meters in the future should adjust their project plans and cost benefit analyses accordingly.

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Federal Court Rules against Consumers on Smart Meters and Privacy Rights

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions , Updated August 22, 2018

Key Article Points

  • Based upon a Federal Appeals Court analysis, all City of Naperville electric customers are being subjected to a governmental search every 15 minutes without a voluntary consent.
  • On August 16, 2018, a Federal Appeals Court ruled against the privacy rights of consumers concluding that governmental searches being conducted as related to data collection by smart meters are reasonable and thus permissible.
  • There are limitations to the Court ruling where it indicates that “our holding depends on the particular circumstances of this case.” [1]

For the people living in Naperville, Illinois, how does it “feel” to be subjected to a governmental search in your home every 15 minutes without your consent?

Added Commentary:  This Court ruling appears merely to have had the effect of advancing from the District Court opinion of “deemed” consent for data collection to an Appeals Court opinion of “deemed” legitimate government interest for data collection.  Either way, smart meter privacy invasions continue to occur, just now as an official governmental “search.”

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Future Hack Scenario: Disrupting a Country through Its Smart Meters

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

A new book by Charles Arthur on “Cyber Wars” reviews the most significant cyber attacks in recent years, discusses the lessons learned, and then concludes with an outline of what future hacks we can expect over the next couple of decades.  [1,2,3]

The first future hack scenario deals with smart devices which may be hacked and controlled through ultrasonic “speech” instructions which can unknowingly be given to smart devices in the home (like your front door to unlock) from your computer or phone speakers.

The second future hack scenario deals with self-driving cars where machine learning (ML) systems can potentially be easily affected by hackers and other bad actors to cause self-driving cars not to stop for stop signs or lights as an example.

The third future hack scenario deals with “disrupting a country through its smart meters.”  Continue reading

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Smart Meter Cyber Attacks: “A Clear and Present Danger”

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

A new article has been published in the International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection entitled, “Security Analysis of an Advanced Metering Infrastructure.”  According to the article [1]:

“Sophisticated cyber attacks on advanced metering infrastructures are a clear and present danger.  The most devastating scenario involves a computer worm that traverses advanced metering infrastructures and permanently disables or ‘bricks’ [2] millions of smart meters in major metropolitan areas.”

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We’re Being “Hunted” by Smart Meters and the Internet of Things

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

were-being-hunted-by-smart-meters-and-iotBecause of the Internet of Things (IoT) and the deployment of devices like utility smart meters we are quickly losing our personal freedom and liberty and further heading toward Orwell’s 1984 [1].  For those aware of what is happening, we realize that “We’re being hunted,” and that, “We feel like prey.”  This process must be reversed if we are to regain our rights as a free people.

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Smart Meter Deployments Result in a Cyber Attack Surface of “Unprecedented Scale”

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions 

cyber-attack-surface-of-unprecedented-scaleThe Internet of Things (IoT) involves an Internet which will evolve from connecting just machines and people towards connecting “smart” objects and things.  The electric utility industry is currently developing an IoT-based smart grid (SG).  This SG is envisioned as the largest installation of an IoT network for our future world with literally billions of smart objects and things, such as smart meters, smart appliances, and other sensors [1].

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Health Risks Associated with Smart Meter Wireless Emissions

bank-of-smart-meters-croppedby K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

Article Key Points

  • There is a “reasonable basis” for concern regarding health risks associated with smart meter wireless emissions.
  • It is “unreasonable” to involuntarily and chronically expose consumers to the electromagnetic energy emitted by smart meters.

Over the past three years at this website I have detailed a number of concerns related to utility smart meters including financial costs, privacy invasions, cyber threats, and the increased risk of fires as compared with analog meters.  Another concern relates to health risks associated with wireless emissions.

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How the Smart Meter ‘Remote Disconnect’ Can Cause Fires

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions 

Smart Meter Fireball and RDI have previously stated that “the most dangerous ‘feature’ included in the majority of smart meters deployed today is the remote disconnect option.” [1] [2]  At the time, I was primarily referencing the increased risk that the smart meter remote disconnect (RD) poses to the electric grid from a cyber threat perspective.  In addition, however, the RD is one of the features of a smart meter (as compared to other types of electric usage meters) that increases the risk of catastrophic meter failures and resulting building fires.

To help illustrate how smart meter RDs can result in fires, this article will highlight the results of forensic investigations by EFI Global, Inc. (EFI) for a failed Sensus brand smart meter reported as involved in a fire in Las Vegas, Nevada in July 2015 [3].  There were actually two separate evaluations of the failed smart meter, first a non-destructive review in July 2015 and a destructive inspection conducted in April 2016.

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Smart Meter Deployments: Based upon Biased and False Assumptions for Providing Eco-Feedback to Consumers (Part 2)

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

Smart Meter Enabled Eco Feedback ImageWhat if the billions and billions of dollars being spent to deploy so-called “smart meters” were found to be justified based upon biased and false assumptions?  Should consumers still be required to pay for smart meters that were erroneously promoted as being installed for their benefit, i.e., to help them manage their energy bills?

This article will demonstrate that based upon the latest research and under the most optimistic circumstances, consumers within the general population might reduce their energy consumption by only as much as 0.5 to 0.7 % if they have access to enhanced feedback from smart meters.

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Little Justification for ‘Smart’ Meters Unless to Serve as “Crude and Heavy-Handed Price Mechanism” to Change Consumer Behavior

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

Little Justification for Smart MetersThis article highlights the views of Stephen Thomas on the topic of smart meters.  Stephen Thomas is an Emeritus Professor for energy policy at the University of Greenwich.  Professor Thomas was featured as a guest on BBC Radio’s Money Box program on March 26, 2016 [1].  In addition, he has published a paper entitled, “Not Too Smart an Innovation: Britain’s Plans to Switch Consumers to Smart Electricity and Gas Meters” [2].

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Smart Meters: An Example of Surveillance Capitalism

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions, Updated July 2019

Surveillance Eye and CapitalismAn essay preview was given this month for a new book to be authored by Shoshana Zuboff (now actually published in 2019) dealing with the topic of “surveillance capitalism” [1] [2].  Giant corporations supported by government have created a new digital “subspecies of capitalism based in which profits derive from the unilateral surveillance and modification of human behavior.”

“While the world is riveted by the showdown between Apple and the FBI, the real truth is that the surveillance capabilities being developed by surveillance capitalists are the envy of every state security agency.” [1]

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Vast Majority of Consumers Suffer Financial “Net Loss” with Smart Meters

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

Frontier Economics and Consumer Net Loss with Smart MetersThis article provides specific information to counter claims made by smart meter proponents that smart meters provide consumers with financial benefits, i.e., saving energy and reducing their utility bill.  In addition, this article presents information to help disentangle how policy makers conflate the topics of grid modernization, smart meter deployments, and sound environmental policy.

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TEDx Talk: “Wireless Wake-Up Call”

Washington DC Immersed in WirelessA TEDxBerkeley Presentation about the Health Impacts of Wireless Technology and Proposed Solutions

On February 6th, Jeromy Johnson, an expert in mitigating the negative impacts of Electromagnetic Field (EMF) exposure, was featured as a speaker at the TEDxBerkeley event for 2016.  The title of the presentation was “Wireless Wake-Up Call.”

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Families Punished by ‘Smart’ Meters and TOU Rates, Recent Study Confirms

Load Curve and TOU Ratesby K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

In describing the effects of time varying electricity rates or Time-of-Use (TOU) rates on consumers, I have previously referenced the logical and common sense assertions of the Berkshire-Litchfield Environmental Council (BLEC) [1]:

“Tiered pricing automatically penalizes the elderly, the self-employed, the infirm, the unemployed, [and] stay-at-home parents with young children …  People can choose to do their laundry later at night but meals and bathing carry fewer options.”

More recently, the social implications of implementing TOU rates have now been described in a study published in September 2015 regarding “peak demand and the family peak period in Australia” [2].

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‘Smart’ Meters Being Deployed without Transparency or Necessary Public Debate

Transparency on Smart Metersby K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

I have discovered several recently published articles and studies that provide profound insight on how the “smart grid” is envisioned to affect the consumer by those developing it and how substantial social implications of smart grid implementation are not being sufficiently addressed or publicly debated.

This article will explain who envisioned the smart grid and why smart meters are being deployed.  Empirical evidence will be presented on how consumer interests and rights are being ignored and why smart meter opposition by the public is fully justified and necessary.  Finally, this article provides possible solutions to correct some of the injustices being imposed upon the consumer.

Highlights and Key Points of this Article

  • Because of the absence of transparency or public debate, the smart grid lacks “democratic legitimacy.”

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‘Smart’ Meters Represent Industrial Profiteering and Government Sanctioned Surveillance, According to Study

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

Consumer Dataveillance by Smart MetersIn an article from December 31st, I wrote that ‘Smart’ Meters Generate a ‘Gold Mine of Data’ for Utilities and that they provide a ‘gateway’ to the home.

To better understand the full nature of this “data gold mining” and the motives behind it, I will highlight portions of a newly published paper, “The Neoliberal Politics of ‘Smart’: Electricity Consumption, Household Monitoring, and the Enterprise Form.”  The authors are from Portland State University.

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‘Smart’ Meters Generate a ‘Gold Mine of Data’ for Utilities

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

Smart Meter 'Big Data' Gold MineI have been saying for a number of years that utility smart meters invade your privacy and have substantiated this assertion in a number of ways.

Utility companies dismiss privacy invasion claims by replying with simplistic, misleading statements, such as, “Just like standard meters, smart meters will measure the amount of electricity you use – not how you use it.” [1]

In trying to find a new and simple way to explain how smart meters are in fact invading your privacy much more than traditional meters, I thought of an analogy of comparing smart meter data collection with “mining for gold.”

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Congressional Testimony: ‘Smart’ meters have a life of 5 to 7 years.

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

Gaines Testimony Oct 2015Introduction

Testimony was provided last week (October 21, 2015) at a Congressional hearing regarding “cybersecurity for power systems.”  A surprising admission was provided by one of the expert witnesses that I will discuss here in this article.

Mr. Bennett Gaines testified on behalf of FirstEnergy Service Company.  He is a Senior Vice President and the Corporate Services and Chief Information Officer.

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Smart meters giving Victorian consumers ‘no benefit’ on electricity bills, auditor-general says

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions 

Smart Meter DunceIn 2006, the Victorian Government in Australia mandated the rollout of electricity smart meters to all households and small businesses across Victoria under the Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) program.

Victorians have paid more than $2 billion for the deployment of the smart meters, but there has been “no overall benefit to consumers,” an auditor-general’s report has found.

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Consumers and Environment Unlikely to Benefit from Smart Meters, Confirms Latest Research

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions 

Kellogg Smart Meter Graphic with CreditThe smart grid industry has continued to spend billions and billions of dollars to deploy smart meters into the population despite the mounting evidence that they are of no value to consumers and actually introduce significant privacy, safety, and security risks.

Recent research at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and the University of Chicago Booth School provides additional confirmation that smart meters are unlikely to benefit either the consumer or the environment.

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Utility Industry Aware of Safety and Accuracy Issues with Digital Meters for Years

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions 

EPRI White PaperIn reviewing an electric utility industry document from 2010, it is quite clear that the industry knew of safety and accuracy issues with smart meters before they were ever manufactured and deployed.  The title of the document is “Accuracy of Digital Electricity Meters,” published by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI).

What is so incredible about the document is how strongly it was acknowledged that traditional analog meters were “an amazing of piece of engineering work.”

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Utilities ‘Very Excited’ about Mining Smart Meter Data and Invading Your Privacy

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions 

Big Brother Graphic with SMAt a recent IBM-related conference, Dr. Stephen Pratt, Chief Technical Officer for CenterPoint Energy, stated the following during an interview:

“We have an entire organization that’s gotten behind data as an asset

We get a lot of data.  We do 221,000,000 meter reads a day …

We can do nothing with that data, or we can mine that data and use what we find from mining that data …

That is very exciting to me today.”

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Customer Calls, Not Smart Meters, Still Primary Source of Power Outage Notification for Utilities

The BRIDGE Energy Group has announced the results of its 2015 utility industry survey on outage and restoration management.  Despite the fact that 81% of surveyed utilities claim to have Smart Meters deployed, only 16% of these utilities use their smart meters as the primary source of power failure alerts on blue sky days and 12% during storms.

Outage Reports by Source

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Smart Meter Rollout a Waste of Money, According to Study

Waste of MoneySmart meters have been advertised as a means to “empower” consumers with information that will somehow save customers money despite the fact that the deployment of the meters themselves cost billions and billions of dollars.

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“Why Privacy Matters” by Glenn Greenwald

Greenwald PhotoJournalist Glenn Greenwald  has broken many stories on the  global surveillance being conducted by the NSA and GCHQ.  As one of the first reporters to see Edward Snowden’s files, he faced personal repercussions for his professional work — yet continues to speak publicly about mass surveillance.  In this searing talk, viewable below, Greenwald makes the case for why you need to care about privacy, even if you’re “not doing anything you need to hide.”

The presentation by Glenn Greenwald is particularly important to remind us on “why privacy matters” in a world threatened by more and more intrusive monitoring of our activities, whether it be from recording of telephone calls, tracking of Internet activity, surveillance drones, or utility smart meters.

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“Microwaves, Science and Lies” Documentary Reveals a Product Defense Strategy

Introduction to the Documentary Film

Waves DVD Jacket. Front“When business leads research, can we still trust science?”

For the past ten years worldwide, questioning on the safety of mobile phone antennas has been increasing.  Numerous scientific studies have revealed the adverse effects of electro- magnetic waves on health.  Yet, most health agencies, industry representatives, and a portion the scientific community claim that current health standards adequately protect the public.

Earlier this year journalist Nancy Meritens  and film director Jean Hèches completed their documentary Ondes, Science et Manigances [or Microwaves, Science and Lies], that demonstrates how the telecommunications industry creates doubt about harmful radiofrequency waves through the manipulation of science.

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Radiofrequency (RF) Fields: Possibly, Probably, or Definitely Carcinogenic — The Evidence Mounts Toward the Latter.

BrainThe International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) generally categorizes agents (e.g., substances or radiation) into four (4) categories in terms of cancer causing ability:

  • Group 1:        Carcinogenic to humans.
  • Group 2A:     Probably carcinogenic to humans.
  • Group 2B:     Possibly carcinogenic to humans.
  • Group 3:        Not classifiable as to carcinogenicity in humans.

This article will demonstrate in a step by step fashion that evidence is mounting for RF radiation being considered definitely carcinogenic.  In the paragraphs that follow, information is presented showing how research data has accumulated over the past couple of years showing a progression from Group 2B to Group 2A, and finally to Group 1.  In addition, evidence continues to mount regarding other types of adverse biological effects caused by RF radiation emissions, some of which are summarized in the final section of this article.

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Smart Meter Transmission Frequency Claims – “Misinformation” or “Missing Information”?

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions, Updated October 25, 2018

Introduction

When installing wireless smart meters in the neighborhood, utilities typically attempt to downplay customer concerns with so-called “Fact Sheets” and marketing campaigns.  One of the issues normally deals with answering the following question:

“How often is my smart meter transmitting?”

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The Dangers of 5G to Children’s Health

[SkyVision Solutions Editor’s Note:  Smart Grid Awareness primarily discusses health and security risks related to implementation of costly electric grid modernization efforts.  Even more risky will be implementation of so-called 5G technology, which in theory would eventually include utility smart meters and every Internet-enabled device on the planet.]

By the Children’s Health Defense Team

Mobile and wireless technologies are a ubiquitous feature of modern life.  Most U.S. adults own smartphones, a growing proportion are “smartphone-only” Internet users and over a fourth report being online “almost constantly.”  As for children, a 2014 survey of high-income nations reported that almost seven in ten children used a mobile phone, and two-thirds of those had a smartphone, usually by age 10.  As described by Nielsen, it is now as common to see “a kid with a smartphone in their hand” as it was to see “a kid playing with a yo-yo in the years before the digital age.”

The enthusiasm with which the public has embraced each new mobile and wireless technology—most of which have never undergone any appropriate safety testing or standards development—suggests that consumers rarely stop to consider the health implications of the infrastructure shoring up their ability to browse, stream and download anytime and “on the go.”  Consumers are not entirely to blame for their lack of awareness—it is not easy to disentangle the technologies’ health risks in the face of the telecommunications industry’s steady and calculated disinformation efforts and a captured Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that “follows the script of fabulously wealthy, bullying, billion-dollar beneficiaries of wireless.”

“… powerful 5G (fifth-generation) networks and technology are about to subject everyone, on a continuous basis, to unprecedented forms and amounts of mandatory irradiation—without prior study of the potential health impact or any assurance of safety.

Now, however, a global 5G “frenzy” is upon us and is coming into full force.  The rollout of “blazing fast” 5G technology will “dramatically increase the number of transmitters sending signals to cellphones and a host of new Internet-enabled devices.”  The time is ripe for greater grassroots awareness of the undisclosed tradeoffs between convenience and 5G’s potentially catastrophic health effects.  Far from a simple “next-gen” upgrade, powerful 5G (fifth-generation) networks and technology are about to subject everyone, on a continuous basis, to unprecedented forms and amounts of what retired U.S. government physicist Dr. Ronald Powell calls “mandatory irradiation”—without “prior study of the potential health impact” or any assurance of safety.  Considering that young people (with their smaller body mass and developing brains) are particularly vulnerable to radiation, the Environmental Health Trust has termed 5G “the next great unknown experiment on our children”—and the entire human population. Continue reading

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Smart Meter Data Collection is a “Search,” but Court Allows Anyway

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions, Updated Augsut 24, 2018

A few days ago I reported on a ruling in the smart meter-related case of Naperville Smart Meter Awareness (NSMA) v. City of Naperville (Case 1:11-cv-09299) [1].

Since then, there have been several articles in other blogs on the same topic, many of which I considered to be inaccurate or extremely biased.  One this morning by Naked Security, however, I considered to be objective and accurate (and shorter than mine), so I thought I would provide a synopsis and link to it to provide a different perspective. Continue reading

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Nicor Gas Begins Deployment of Smart Meter Radio Modules in Northern Illinois

by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

With little advance notice of what is really happening, Nicor Gas in northern Illinois is quietly attaching wireless transmitters to existing natural gas meters located at customer homes and businesses.

Nicor Gas customers have begun receiving postcards that say:

“In the near future, a small two-way communication device will be installed on the existing natural gas meter at your home or business.  The device will collect natural gas usage information and securely send it to Nicor Gas.”

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