The RFID trend, driven first by purely economic interests, would seem to be of more concern for privacy worries than anything John Ashcroft is up to. Something to start watching.
Here's another scenario: You're going on vacation in Las Vegas, and while you're in that same mall, you buy a book on card counting. Unbeknownst to you, it, too, has an RFID tag impressed into the binding. RFID tags along with their antenna are already part of paper labels attached to shipping containers. It is no stretch to think how unobtrusive they might yet become.Posted by Alan at February 20, 2004 11:53 AMNow as you enter the hotel/casino, an unobtrusive RFID reader tells management that you have in your possession a book on counting cards. The book has a unique serial number associated not with your credit card -- that would be illegal -- but with a customer ID, name, and address. The casino, in turn, subscribes to a service, maybe from Amazon, with a database of every book in print.
In a world of zero latency, as you passed through the doors, your photo was also taken and now it is distributed to every casino on the strip, so that every time you try to enter a casino, your image is matched to the database as a possible card counter, and two guys with closely cropped hair and tight-fitting sports jackets politely ask you to leave.
These very possible tableaus come courtesy of Hal Etterman, an expert on data encryption and surveillance systems at MindForce Consulting.
There is no doubt that RFID tags will be sewn into the lining of every item of clothing manufactured. Current RFID prices are about 16 cents each on orders of 10 million tags, with the price expected to reach a nickel a tag in a year or two.
By using RFID in clothing, not only will companies be able to discourage shoplifting, they'll also be able to spot other frauds, such as counterfeit brand names or buyers who purchase an item at a discount outlet and then try to return it for the retail price at a regular store. Warranties can now also be easily tracked to date of purchase.
With those benefits to the supply chain, the question is, will the store really want to turn off the tag after the item is purchased, and how can you, as a consumer, tell? "What if you have some strange hobbies you'd like kept private?" Etterman asks.
It is certainly a small step from deploying RFID tags, which have a reach of only about three feet, to putting the readers in public places that already have hot spots. The combination is potent. Suddenly, the information in the tag can be transmitted over the Wi-Fi network and associated with all kinds of other data by all kinds of organizations, such as insurance companies. Or, you may be on the Most Wanted list at your local public library. Why shouldn't they have a piece of you, too?
Via InfoWorld