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May 8, 2006 By News Report
Not many consumers know about Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), a wireless technology that allows objects and people to be tagged and tracked. RFID tags contain microchips and tiny radio antennas that are embedded in all kinds of products, credit cards, or stuck on labels. A three-month investigation in the June 2006 issue of Consumer Reports has found the RFID industry lacking in the necessary measures to strengthen tag security against identity thieves.
RFID technology offers huge cost savings to business and it offers consumers conveniences such as speedier checkouts, and public benefits, including ways to manage toxic waste and encourage recycling. However, the tags are also a powerful new means of data collection about consumers, the things they buy, the books they read, and the places they travel. During the investigation, Consumer Reports found:
How RFID Tags Work
An RFID tag contains a microchip and a tiny radio antenna. The tag broadcasts the unique identifying number of the item to any compatible reader within range, from a few inches for credit cards, up to 20 feet for merchandise tags, and up to 750 feet for battery-powered tags in toll passes. The reader then communicates with a computer database, where information linked to that ID number is stored, such as details about when a product was manufactured or medical records for people who have tags implanted. That database in turn can be linked to other networks via the Internet to allow for more widespread data sharing.
Privacy Concerns
While the RFID business steams along, several matters remain unaddressed. Several data-security experts recently demonstrated that when information is communicated wirelessly between RFID devices and readers, for example, it's possible to eavesdrop electronically and to pluck sensitive information out of thin air. Some argue that RFID technology could give the government a ready-made surveillance system as scanners become ubiquitous.
Federal agencies and local law-enforcement agencies already negotiate contracts with private data collectors to obtain personal information they might otherwise be legally prohibited from collecting. Commercial data brokers such as ChoicePoint, Lexis-Nexis, and Acxiom compile computerized dossiers that in one click reveal to government agencies, potential employers, loan officers, or private investigators information that may include your home address, phone number, Social Security number, photograph, legal transgressions, details about divorces, and financial records, among other personal data.
The idea that a tiny radio chip might be traveling in their shirts or shorts doesn't sit well with Americans. The public unease has put the RFID industry on the defensive and its leaders proclaim the importance of addressing the consumer's privacy concerns. But when Consumer Reports asked to discuss the subject with executives of one company, attempts were stonewalled by public relations representatives.
"It's essential to develop the proper framework to protect consumers from the unprecedented privacy and identity theft risks that come with RFID," said Andrea Rock, senior editor at Consumer Reports.
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How the RFID mandate may be the front runner to a biometrics purchasing mandate. We consumers are at a point in life where we will move from the simple task at the market place of purchasing supplies for home, office, motor home or where ever else. We walk into the store and purchase our items, using cash or card to pay for the scanned items, under the UPC (Universal Product Code) system, commonly referred to as the bar-code. It seems simple enough and not threatening to our privacy, right? Well, that first step in the times to come is now about to give way to the next step by a system that could later be used not only as a marketing tool, but as a device used by governments to keep track of and control the lives of their citizens. In fact, you might say this Trojan Horse, containing big brother and all of his friends, is knocking at the door right now trying to get a foot in, and it?s very likely that at least 70 percent of consumers worldwide don?t even know it. Could it be that if those who are unaware knew what lies at the end of this road, this atrocity could be stopped in it?s tracks? Because of the nature of the beast within, it stands to reason that consumers would not want to allow whats in store to take place. Wal-Mart, the ?super power? monster store, has found a new direction in how they will run their conglomeration, and have accordingly informed their global supply chain for the purpose of forcing cooperation concerning this new method for all products bought by and for Wal-Mart?s Corporation. Having so mandated, the suppliers complied, firing the shot that is now being heard around the business world: All retail competitors will now have to follow Wal-Martâ??s new high-tech lead just to be able to compete. The mandate is that all items sold by Wal-Mart will now have a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chip implanted in all products they sell. What is an RFID? Radio frequency identification, or RFID, is a generic term for technologies that use radio waves to automatically identify individual items. There are several methods of identifying objects using RFID, but the most common is to store a serial number that identifies a product, on a microchip that is attached to an antenna (called an RFID transponder, or an RFID tag). Soon, as we see with the bar-code, no one will be able to buy or sell any products without the RFID. This chip will go home with consumers and one day our homes with products containing these RFID chips. Why should we be concerned? At this time it seems that there is nothing we can do about this Trojan horse banging at the door, but we can and need to learn everything possible about the RFID movement in order to be able to maintain our Constitutional right to privacy. Many individuals are apathetic about the RFID chips, chalking it up to technology while not realizing why they should be concerned. How would these individuals feel if their home items were made public knowledge? Anything, from that steamy romance novel sitting on their nightstand to the style and size under pants they wear can be found and monitored. Hypothetically speaking, if a vehicle with a RFID transponder were to pull up out side ones home, those inside that vehicle would have electronic access to the entire inventory of the private lives of that houses occupants, and who knows what could take place once that knowledge leaked out, especially into the wrong hands. We have all heard the saying, ?keep and honest man honest; this certainly gives us something to think about. The RFID market has not stopped here; it will continue to transpire to greater levels beyond our comprehension. There is a RFID chip out now called the Verichip. This chip is implanted into the human body, and may store your Visa Card, bank debit card, and social security and other private information that takes the place of your purse. The perfect storm: What will become of the Verichip by means of how we see progress continue to unfold? Will the Verichip soon be required to be placed in all people as the RFID chip will be required for all products marketed? Let the buyer be aware.