1- Security concerns - Because RFID is not a line-of-sight technology like barcoding, new security issues could develop. For example, a competitor could set up a high-gain directional antenna to scan tags in trucks going to a warehouse. From the data received, this competitor could determine flow rates of various products. Additionally, when RFID is used for high-security operations such as payment methods, fraud is always a possibility. 2- Ghost tags - In rare cases, if multiple tags are read at the same time the reader will sometimes read a tag that does not exist. Therefore, some type of read verification, such as a CRC, should be implemented in either the tag, the reader or the data read from the tag. 3- Proximity issues - RFID tags cannot be read well when placed on metal or liquid objects or when these objects are between the reader and the tag. Nearly any object that is between the reader and the tag reduces the distance the tag can be read from. 4- High cost - Because this technology is still new, the components and tags are expensive compared to barcodes. In addition, software and support personnel needed to install and operate the RFID reading systems (in a warehouse for example) may be more costly to employ. 5- Unread tags - When reading multiple tags at the same time, it is possible that some tags will not be read and there is no sure method of determining this when the objects are not in sight. This problem does not occur with barcodes, because when the barcode is scanned, it is instantly verified when read by a beep from the scanner and the data can then be entered manually if it does not scan. Vulnerable to damage - Water, static discharge or high-powered magnetic surges (such as lightning strike) may damage the tags.
RFID tags and barcodes both carry information about products. However, there are important differences between these two technologies: 1. Barcode readers require a direct line of sight to the printed barcode; RFID reader do not require a direct line of sight to either active RFID tags or passive RFID tags. 2. RFID tags can be read at much greater distances; an RFID reader can pull information from a tag at distances up to 300 feet. The range to read a barcode is much less, typically no more than fifteen feet. 3. RFID readers can interrogate, or read, RFID tags much faster; read rates of forty or more tags per second are possible. Reading barcodes is much more time-consuming; due to the fact that a direct line of sight is required, if the items are not properly oriented to the reader it may take seconds to read an individual tag. Barcode readers usually take a half-second or more to successfully complete a read. 4. Line of sight requirements also limit the ruggedness of barcodes as well as the reusability of barcodes. (Since line of sight is required for barcodes, the printed barcode must be exposed on the outside of the product, where it is subject to greater wear and tear.) RFID tags are typically more rugged, since the electronic components are better protected in a plastic cover. RFID tags can also be implanted within the product itself, guaranteeing greater ruggedness and reusability. 5. Barcodes have no read/write capability; that is, you cannot add to the information written on a printed barcode. RFID tags, however, can be read/write devices; the RFID reader can communicate with the tag, and alter as much of the information as the tag design will allow. 6. RFID tags are typically more expensive than barcodes, in some cases, much more so.
CHICAGO -- RFID is too powerful a technology and Wal-Mart and its suppliers are too cozy with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for the companies to be trusted with the data gathered from radio tags on consumer goods, say a civil rights lawyer and a privacy law expert.
But the companies, led by Procter & Gamble, are opposing RFID legislation, and want consumers to allow them to keep RFID tags active after checkout, and to match shoppers' personal information with particular items.
The civil rights lawyer, Barry Steinhardt, director of the Technology and Liberty Program at the American Civil Liberties Union, spoke at the RFID Journal Live conference in Chicago last week. He said companies could use RFID tags to profile their own customers and share their information with the government -- violating the companies' own privacy policies.
Homeland Security may find the combination of live tags and customer profiles hard to resist when investigating suspected terrorists, or as a means to monitor entire groups of people, said the privacy expert.
ISTPA has developed a privacy framework that organizations can use to comply with emerging privacy laws and policies.
P&G and other companies last week suggested they want to keep RFID tags active after checkout, rather than disabling them with so-called "kill machines." The companies also want to match the unique codes emitted by RFID tags to shoppers' personal information.
RFID will make it easy for companies and government investigators to establish the whereabouts of citizens, by reading the active tags on their clothing and other items in private and public places.
Investigators in divorce cases and criminal investigations already regularly subpoena E-Z Pass automatic toll records, which come from RFID readers, to figure out where an individual's car was at a particular time.
P&G said retailers selling its goods can be trusted to guard consumers' privacy without laws, even if they decide to match their personal information with the serial numbers from the RFID tags.
"If someone selling our products violates our (RFID) privacy policies, we will stop doing business with them," said Sandra Hughes, P&G's global privacy executive.
P&G opposes laws restricting the use of RFID tags in the consumer supply chain and in retail stores, said Hughes.
But without laws preventing businesses from abusing RFID data, U.S. businesses selling RFID-tagged goods may be shut out of overseas markets, where privacy laws are more stringent.
"We have a cowboy mentality about privacy in this country," said the ACLU's Steinhardt. "But we will eventually suffer for it, because we are not complying with global norms."
Companies belonging to EPCglobal, the organization that will keep track of the serial numbers emitted by RFID tags, are counting on Americans to let them read RFID tags, even after purchase.
The companies argue that consumers with active RFID tags on their products can return those goods without a receipt. P&G's Hughes also said that active tags and shoppers' personal information could speed recalls of contaminated and defective products.
Another EPCglobal company is developing smart consumer appliances that read active RFID tags.
"Privacy is cheap," said Peter Glaser, senior manager of client workshops at Accenture Technology Labs, which is developing a smart medicine cabinet and a smart closet, which use RFID readers to encourage people to take their medicine and help them coordinate their wardrobes. "Companies just need to tell consumers what's in it for them."
The most important legal aspect of using RFID technology relates to the infringement of individual privacy rights. RFID systems have the potential to track individuals in an unprecedented manner. If tags are placed on bags, clothing, cosmetic products, or any single retail item for that matter, information about the item can be linked to the purchaser to provide a more complete consumer profile.
For example, when a RFID tag is read, information from the tag could be linked to a purchaser's financial information if the product was purchased with a credit card or loyalty card. Moreover, it is possible for a reader to read tags covertly without the consumer's knowledge. It is also possible that a reader can be set up to read tags from other stores. This means that a reader might be able to determine the contents in a consumer's purse or bag without the consumer even being aware.
Further and aside from the possibility of tracking consumers in the marketplace at anytime or anyplace, which in itself raises significant privacy concerns, RFID tags can be used to track "sensitive-type" items such as pharmaceutical products or even currency. If tags are left active, government and industry can track how you use your money, and what kinds of pharmaceuticals you take.
This presents significant legal problems as our health, financial and other types of "sensitive" information is not normally allowed to be collected, used or disclosed without our consent.
Radio frequency identification (RFID) is a generic term that is used to describe a system that transmits the identity (in the form of a unique serial number) of an object or person wirelessly, using radio waves. It's grouped under the broad category of automatic identification technologies.
RFID is in use all around us. If you have ever chipped your pet with an ID tag, used EZPass through a toll booth, or paid for gas using SpeedPass, you've used RFID. In addition, RFID is increasingly used with biometric technologies for security.
Unlike ubiquitous UPC bar-code technology, RFID technology does not require contact or line of sight for communication. RFID data can be read through the human body, clothing and non-metallic materials.
A basic RFID system consists of three components:
An antenna or coil
A transceiver (with decoder)
A transponder (RF tag) electronically programmed with unique information
Current and Potential Uses of RFID :
Manufacturing RFID has been used in manufacturing plants for more than a decade. It's used to track parts and work in process and to reduce defects, increase throughput and manage the production of different versions of the same product.
Supply Chain Management RFID technology has been used in closed loop supply chains or to automate parts of the supply chain within a company's control for years.
As standards emerge, companies are increasingly turning to RFID to track shipments among supply chain partners.
Payment Systems RFID is all the rage in the supply chain world, but the technology is also catching on as a convenient payment mechanism. One of the most popular uses of RFID today is to pay for road tolls without stopping. These active systems have caught on in many countries, and quick service restaurants are experimenting with using the same active RFID tags to pay for meals at drive-through windows.
Security and Access Control RFID has long been used as an electronic key to control who has access to office buildings or areas within office buildings. The first access control systems used low-frequency RFID tags
