by Yana A. St. Clair, Esq.
The digital transformation of the electric-power sector has many benefits however, these capabilities also elevate legal obligations
To follow up on our last issue, we now turn our attention specifically to the legal issues of digital transformation for consumer data and privacy.
The digital transformation of the electric-power sector has many benefits in facilitating the collection of data. However, these capabilities also elevate the legal obligations surrounding the confidentiality, integrity, and proper use of data, especially consumer data gathered by smart meters and home energy systems. In this context, “data privacy” in the sector means protecting personal, operational, and system-level data from unauthorized access, misuse, or disclosure, as utilities adopt increasingly digital tools for monitoring and control.
Consumer data, consent, and governance. Smart meters and home energy management systems record detailed usage at short intervals for purposes such as time-of-use billing and energy management. Because these readings can reveal occupancy patterns, appliance use, and lifestyle habits, unauthorized access creates serious privacy risks. Legally, this pushes utilities and regulators toward strict data governance, meaning clarifying data ownership, defining conditions for sharing or sale, and setting retention limits. Many jurisdictions require explicit consumer consent before third parties may access personal energy-use data; but in my personal opinion, all should!
Operational data and privacy-aligned security. Beyond consumer data, operational information from substations, lines, DERs, and control systems is essential to planning and real-time operation, yet attractive to attackers seeking disruption or competitive intelligence. Legal compliance in this area includes encryption, secure authentication, role-based access control, network segmentation, and continuous logging/monitoring, to detect and respond to suspicious activity. These measures help to ensure that data flows only to authorized entities.
Vendors, cloud, and cross-border obligations. As utilities increasingly outsource functions to technology vendors and cloud-analytics platforms, privacy risk and legal complexity increase. Contracts must embed safeguards and compliance frameworks to prevent leakage or misuse. Utilities should require vendor conformity with recognized information-security standards (e.g., ISO/IEC 27001) and perform regular audits. In addition, data-residency laws (rules governing where data must be stored), must be observed.
Regulatory baselines and regional differences. There are clear differences between jurisdictions when it comes to all of these issues:
- United States: Consumer data privacy is governed by state-level privacy laws; in parallel, utilities must comply with NERC Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) standards for operational security. This creates a dual track: state privacy obligations for personal data and sector-specific federal standards for grid operations
- European Union: The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) provides a comprehensive personal-data framework with strict requirements for handling, breach notification, and user consent. The EU’s GDPR’s offers greater protections and transparency to consumers than the US approach.
- Rest of the world: The approach is more heterogeneous: “various global and regional regulations shape privacy practices, often coupled with data-residency constraints and reliance on standards-based safeguards. Sector guidance and technical standards play a central harmonizing role across jurisdictions.
Standards as legal-tech bridges. Standards bodies incorporate privacy-preserving features into power-system protocols and frameworks. In particular, IEC 62351 provides guidance for securing communications in power-system automation, supporting confidentiality and integrity in digital substations, while organizations such as IEEE and IEC more broadly shape technical norms that utilities can reference in governance programs and vendor requirements. These standards do not replace laws but help operationalize compliance across diverse legal environments.
Having discussed in detail the issues surrounding data privacy, in our next issue we will turn our focus to Operational Data and Grid Security
Disclosure: Please note that none of the information contained within the above column is to be considered legal advice.
Biography
Yana is an American attorney licensed to practice in all State and Federal courts of California. Yana holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science specializing in International Relations from UCLA, the Degree of Juris Doctor from Loyola Law School, and a Master of Business Administration Degree from Ashford University. Since the beginning of her undergraduate studies, Yana has been involved in various aspects of the field of Electrical Engineering, where she employs her business and legal knowledge to consulting and advising businesses and individuals on relevant topics of concern. Yana also serves as Editor for PAC World magazine, having been with the publication since its inception. As an attorney, Yana specializes in criminal defense, where she devotes her talents and expertise to fighting for her clients’ rights and freedom.
