RFID Invading Our Lives?

How RFID technology will enter our Lives

With RFID technology a store owner knows everything about the item you take to the checkout including price, colour size etc. The USA now wants to put this technology into passports which would allow people to be mass processed through custom control, without having to form queues. You know what it’s like when you arrive home late and there is a queue of 200 people in front of you at the Passport desk. So a convenience would be faster people handling.

Credit card companies would be able to read your card simply by you waving it near a reading device. So we face a revolution in the use of RFID technology

But security on terrorist activity may be compromised because he could alter his passport to get though without an official actually seeing the falsified document.

And then there is the issue of personal privacy.
You buy an item using RFID and for the rest of the day a scanner could pick up the fact you just bought it and how would this compromise you if you are holding a RFID credit card.

Also consider the supply chain structure.
Now thieves could know what's being held in premises and what’s its value is.

There are some solutions fro specific cases
So for example when you buy something, there should be a tear off section your ticket to remove the device. So you will not be readable after you’ve bought your items.

Credit cards are a different consideration.
What would be the diving line between being close enough for the scanner to pick you up but not close enough for a thief to scan the card in your handbag?

An unacceptable situation would be where thieves could wander around shopping centres and simply get close enough to your wallet to scan you car card. Clearly there is some extra thinking to be done here and it may be some time before this is solved, where convenience is improved but your privacy is secure.

Maybe aluminum wallets are the answer? Time will tell.

RFID and security tags