Comments on: Sensitive and Inside Big Technology: Views from the Other Side (Part Four) https://stopsmartmeters.org/2011/11/17/sensitive-and-inside-big-technology-views-from-the-other-side-part-four/ Fighting for health, privacy, and safety Wed, 23 Nov 2011 15:36:11 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5 By: admin https://stopsmartmeters.org/2011/11/17/sensitive-and-inside-big-technology-views-from-the-other-side-part-four/#comment-20418 Wed, 23 Nov 2011 15:36:11 +0000 https://stopsmartmeters.org/?p=2801#comment-20418 In reply to Stephan Davies.

@Stephan On the righthand side of this page there is a link for purchasing a multi-purpose meter at a reasonable cost. They also sell other types, including the “orange-call” sort that “Marc” uses.

]]> By: Stephan Davies https://stopsmartmeters.org/2011/11/17/sensitive-and-inside-big-technology-views-from-the-other-side-part-four/#comment-20385 Wed, 23 Nov 2011 10:09:41 +0000 https://stopsmartmeters.org/?p=2801#comment-20385 Question for Mr. Marc Handke:
Quoted from above …..”So when he moved back to a densely populated neighborhood of a Silicon Valley town, he took the trouble to buy a device to measure the radio-frequency …..”
I would be grateful if the device Marc purchased to measure the RF in his home were specified, and where I can purchase one also.
If he wishes to e-mail me directly, that would be great.
I am researching this whole thing, and I think meeting up with Marc, if permitted, would be very beneficial for both of us.
Sincerely,

Stephan Davies

]]> By: Jim https://stopsmartmeters.org/2011/11/17/sensitive-and-inside-big-technology-views-from-the-other-side-part-four/#comment-19663 Fri, 18 Nov 2011 20:22:29 +0000 https://stopsmartmeters.org/?p=2801#comment-19663 In reply to Redi Kilowatt.

> NO SmartMeters used by PG&E have the ZigBee transmitters in them.

Page 3, footnote 3 – they have two radios INSTALLED, one is on 2.4 Ghz (ZigBee).

They are just “not utilizing” them right now, “not currently in use”, whatever that may mean, it could be that they are just not offering that service YET, but that doesn’t mean you couldn’t start communicating with them right now. That footnote was written by a lawyer.

I am sure someone will eventually post something about testing / messing with the ZigBee interface on a PG&E meter soon.

And this website covers more than the PG&E area. In a lot of cities the power company is offering ZigBee home power monitoring devices.

Another interesting figure is the 190,000 possible mesh network syncing packets sent in a 24 hour period. This pulsating random mess of small pulses should drive anyone sensitive to RF crazy. The 190,000 and 14 daily hours total time of these pulses would really not be fun. If you lived in an apartment complex where there are many meters, that maximum would probably apply.

And since the $ manufacturer $ did these tests, you know they were done in places with the least network activity so they could come up with the best numbers.

We need a independent investigation into the real technical situation. Including the privacy and hacking situation. Looks like the PUC isn’t going to do that and will just rely on what the fox says while he’s guarding the hen house.

Another thing, page 7, table 3-1, you see “firmware upgrade” – pushed from PG&E. COMPLETE REPROGRAMMING IS POSSIBLE. That includes reprogramming ANY OR ALL of the calibration settings that the meter uses to measure electrical usage.

Meaning, they can change the KWH reading any time they want, or make it read just a little more than it should to make $$$ millions more and you would never notice because it’s so small of an amount. That’s called unfair trade. Or just plain theft.

Do you really trust that these greedy bastards won’t try it? How will anyone ever know?

“Meter Connect and Disconnect” – You talk back to us and we show you who’s in charge and who has the power over your life!

“On Demand Read” – meaning a hacker could get as many reading as he wanted, every second if he wanted. Law enforcement may use that feature too.

And there it is, page 10 – Radio transmission wattage, 2.5W !!!! At 900 Mhz

Is 2.5W within FCC limits? Probably for that LICENSED BAND, yes. Is it safe to stick you head next to it for hours on end?

I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t want to sleep next to an antenna pulsating 2.5W of power at 900 Mhz all night.

2.5W is going to travel MILES in a open space. Your meter data will be available to more and more hackers! How nice!

These meters are bad news and need to be completely stopped now.

Here’s the link to the doc (again) for reference:
http://emfsafetynetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/PGERFDataOpt-outalternatives_11-1-11-3pm.pdf

]]> By: Redi Kilowatt https://stopsmartmeters.org/2011/11/17/sensitive-and-inside-big-technology-views-from-the-other-side-part-four/#comment-19649 Fri, 18 Nov 2011 18:39:38 +0000 https://stopsmartmeters.org/?p=2801#comment-19649 That was a very informative document from PG&E about the radio transmissions power and frequency. The very most important thing to me is the fact that NO SmartMeters used by PG&E have the ZigBee transmitters in them. That means that if someone signs up for the smart thermostat program, ANY one way on-off cycling commands for the air conditioner motors will not come through the meter, they must come from a transmitter on a utility pole somewhere.
Note, the smart thermostats are the only device or appliance inside of a private building that will EVER be controlled by the utility open radio channel.
All this talk about other appliances being monitored or controlled by the utility through the meter is pure bunk, I hope this document clears that up for some of these science fiction writers.

]]>