EURASIP Journal on Information Security welcomes submissions to the new special issue on Practicable Privacy Enhancing Technologies and Security Solutions for the Smart Grid User Domain.

(Updated version)

Intelligent energy networks, often termed “Smart Grids”, introduce information and communication technologies in traditional energy grids, to enable the collection of fine-grained monitoring data and to provide bi-directional communication. This enables a variety of new use-cases, such as the widespread integration of renewable energy sources, smart charging of electric vehicles, demand response management, real-time energy pricing and smart home (energy) management. However, the fine-grained, and sometimes personal data made available in this way has led to privacy concerns and the possibility of controlling in-home appliances remotely has lead to security concerns. A large number of recent contributions propose the use of privacy-enhancing technologies (PETs) and applied cryptography, such as secure signal processing, aggregation through homomorphic encryption, or differential privacy, to address these concerns and to strike a balance between the functionality needed in smart grids and the consumer requirements for security and privacy. However, apart from off-the-shelf security methods and simple anonymization and pseudonymization for privacy, none of these technologies has been widely adopted for real world use yet. In this special issue, we invite contributions that deal with deploying PETs and security methods in the real world or suggest new method that achieve real-world applicability, including acceptance through the consumer.

The fact that due to the European Union 20/20/20 regulations, in many European countries the roll-out of Smart Grid technology in the user domain is immanent, makes the topic of this special issue a highly significant and current topic. The question of how a balance between the required functionality and the security and privacy requirements can be achieved has not yet been answered – even while the preparations for the roll-out are ongoing. The EU Mandate M/490 has delivered first guidelines, but these remain on a high and abstract level. Immediate action is required if the first phase of smart grid equipment installed in the user domain (such as smart meters) is to be future proof in terms of security and privacy. The topic of how security and privacy enhancing methods for the smart grid user domain can be taken from the lab to the real world is therefore not only relevant, but also urgent.

This special issues seeks paper submissions from academia, industry, and government
institutions presenting novel research on all theoretical and practical
aspects of smart grid security and privacy, including design, analysis,
experimentation, and fielded systems. We particularly invite
contributions that deal with deploying PETs and security methods in the
real world or suggest new method that achieve real-world applicability,
including acceptance through the consumer.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to:
- Data protection and privacy
- Trust and assurance
- Risk and threat analysis
- Cloud computing and smart grids
- Privacy-preserving Smart Metering
- Privacy and Security for Consumer Energy Management Systems (CEMS) and
Smart Homes
- Privacy Enhancing Technologies for Electric Mobility
- Usable Security and User Acceptance of Security Methods in the Smart
Grid User Domain
- Privacy and Security in Demand Response Management and other Smart
Grid Use Cases

Submission instructions:

Before submitting your manuscript, please ensure you have carefully read the Instructions for Authors for EURASIP Journal on Information Security. The complete manuscript should be submitted through the EURASIP Journal on Information Security submission system. To ensure that you submit to the correct special issue please select the appropriate section in the drop-down menu upon submission. In addition, indicate within your cover letter that you wish your manuscript to be considered as part of the special issue on Practicable Privacy Enhancing Technologies and Security Solutions for the Smart Grid User Domain. All submissions will undergo rigorous peer review and accepted articles will be published within the journal as a collection.

Deadline for submissions: 15 October, 2015

Authors are encouraged to submit earlier. Authors of any submissions accepted before August 31, 2015 will be invited for presentation at a workshop to take place in Salzburg, Austria in September 2015 (exact date to be announced). For the authors of the three best contributions accepted before August 31, 2015, in addition to the workshop fee, travel and accommodation will be covered.



Lead guest editor:

Dominik Engel, Josef-Ressel-Center for User-Centric Smart Grid Privacy, Security and Control, Salzburg University of Applied Sciences, Austria

Guest editor:

Günther Eibl, Josef-Ressel-Center for User-Centric Smart Grid Privacy, Security and Control, Salzburg University of Applied Sciences, Austria