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A man next to a smart thermostatA man next to a smart thermostat

@cactusshark888/TikTok Mikael Thalen

'Woke up sweating': Texas power companies remotely raise temperatures
on people using their smart thermostats

Smart thermostats can be remotely adjusted during periods of high
energy demand.

Mikael ThalenMikael Thalen 

Mikael Thalen

 

Tech

Published Jun 18, 2021   Updated Jun 18, 2021, 12:23 pm CDT

Power companies in Texas are remotely raising temperatures inside of
some customers' homes amid the state's ongoing energy shortage.

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Houston resident Brandon English, whose home has an
internet-connected smart thermostat installed, was shocked to learn
of the practice after his wife and infant daughter "woke up
sweating."

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Speaking with KHOU 11, English stated that despite his wife turning
down the temperature before taking a nap with their 3-year-old child,
the temperature in their home rose significantly.

"They'd been asleep long enough that the house had already gotten to
78 degrees," English said. "So they woke up sweating."

English, who expressed concerns over the potential for his young
child to overheat and dehydrate, said it wasn't long after that his
wife received a text alert noting that the thermostat had been
remotely altered during a three-hour "energy saving event."

The thermostat, operated by the company EnergyHub, appears to have
been enrolled in a program known as "Smart Savers Texas," KHOU 11
notes. The program, which many customers are enrolled in unknowingly,
allows power companies to remotely adjust thermostats when energy
demands are high.

Upon learning about the program, English says he immediately
unenrolled: "I wouldn't want anybody else controlling my things for
me."

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The English family is not the only one in Texas that seems to be
experiencing such issues. The Daily Dot came across multiple videos
on social media from individuals who claimed that their thermostats
were being altered remotely.

    Is anyone in TX dealing with this if they have a nest? There goes
    my desire to ever buy a smart thermostat holy crap
    pic.twitter.com/vBxyivrkjg

    -- Adam Ellis (@GilbyRanger) June 18, 2021

In those cases, residents with Google's Nest thermostats received
messages noting that their temperatures had been adjusted during an
"Energy Rush Hour."

The issue comes shortly after the Electric Reliability Council of
Texas (ERCOT), the state's power grid manager, called on customers to
reduce their energy usage and adjust their thermostats to 78 degrees
or higher.

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Serious questions continue to be raised about the resilience of the
privately-run grid in the wake of the devastating snowstorm last
February that resulted in widespread power outages.

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*First Published: Jun 18, 2021, 12:01 pm CDT

Mikael Thalen

Mikael Thalen is a tech and security reporter based in Seattle,
covering social media, data breaches, hackers, and more.

  *  

Mikael ThalenMikael Thalen
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