[Cryptography] Gaslighting ~= power droop == side channel attack

[Christian Huitema]

On Monday, November 28, 2016 5:22 AM, Henry Baker wrote:
> ...
> God forbid we ever get another Gerald Ford or Jimmy Carter in the White House; 
> our "smart" thermostats will turn us into the secret energy police for pushing our 
> thermostats above the "recommended" temperature.

Smart power meters could do much more than that. It turns out that various appliances can be recognized through their "power consumption signature". A quick search of "appliance recognition" turns out a variety of research papers on how to do that, as well as projects to build data bases of appliance signatures. The smart power meter of the future ought to be able to check not only when you are starting the dish washer, but what brand and what model you are using. And of course, when the utility starts doing that, they will want to teach you what to use and when.

-- Christian Huitema