How does a public key infrastructure (PKI) apply to metering?
With the build out of two way communication between the meter, and the utility, utility companies recognized the need for stronger security for utility to meter communications. Public-key algorithms create a mechanism for sharing keys among large numbers of meters or endpoints in a complex meter data management system. Public Key cryptography allows utilities to securely control, and manage individual meters. One of the major benefits of a PKI in metering is that if a meter key gets compromised, only that individual meter is compromised. PKI brings other major benefits such as: • Strong Mutual Authentication • Non-repudiation • Key agreement for session confidentiality Communication systems that rely on a single network key for encryption and decryption (symmetric key cryptography) run the risk of compromising the entire network if a key is lost or stolen. The risk associated with managing this type of network becomes unacceptable as the number of endpoints increase.
