Active RFID vs. Passive RFID

today I'm talking about two kinds of RFID : passive and active RFID and also some differentiation between them.

Active RFID and Passive RFID are fundamentally different technologies that are often evaluated together. While both use radio frequency energy to communicate between a tag and a reader, the method of powering the tags is different. Active RFID uses an internal power source (battery) within the tag to continuously power the tag and its RF communication circuitry, whereas Passive RFID relies on RF energy transferred from the reader to the tag to power the tag.

Passive RFID requires stronger signals from the reader, and the signal strength returned from the tag is constrained to very low levels. Active RFID allows very low-level signals to be received by the tag (because the reader does not need to power the tag), and the tag can generate high-level signals back to the reader. Additionally, the Active RFID tag is continuously powered, whether in the reader field or not. Active tags can also 'beacon,' or initiate communication with a reader (or other tags) when certain conditions are present. Active tags can also contain external sensors to monitor temperature, humidity, motion, and other conditions.

http://www.atlasrfidsolutions.com/active-vs-passive.asp

RFID and supply chain management

In the purpose of strategic management one of the important business level strategies is COST LEADERSHIP STRATEGY. Supply chain management is one of the main issues of every industry in order to coordinating this process efficiency and also reducing the cost. Increase efficiency in this process is equal to more flexibility and more profit. RFID many errors and mistake that accrued by Bar Codes such as signal required, limit number of scanned items solved .Furthermore, all the information about the products was available in any locations and was accurate. Manager easily by implementing RFID improved the supply chain process and increased customer satisfactions as Wal-Mart do. Wal-Mart is the first companies in applying RFID system.” This improvement on supply chain brings Wal-Mart billions of profit as Phillip J. Windley, an Associate Professor of Computer Science at Brigham Young University, estimates that US retail giant Wal-Mart alone could save $8.35 billion annually with RFID.
RFID transponder can automatically fix to the boxes and pallets in production stages. Communication between transponders and reader are fully automatic. All the product information which is on the Electronic Product Code will store on the transponders in the moments. This information immediately transfers to the central logistics merchandise management system. Any movement of product in or out of its place and also in or out of warehouse will rescored right away thus all the information are up to date. Up to 40 RFID transponder can register by a single reader less than one second.

http://www.ameinfo.com/66090.html)

Are there laws governing the use of RFID?

Many existing privacy laws cover the use of data collected by RFID systems, as well as bar codes and other systems. Some U.S. states have enacted or considered enacting new laws dealing with issues particular to RFID, such as the surreptitious scanning of tags by retailers or those with criminal intent. Washington introduced HB 1031 (the Electronic Bill of Rights), imposing rules on how companies could deploy RFID and retain personal information gathered via the technology, but this bill was returned to the House Rules Committee.Michigan has created a payment incentive program to help ameliorate the cost to farmers, while still ensuring that the majority of livestock is tagged. Michigan has mandated the use of RFID tags to identify cattle, and more than a dozen other states have introduced laws limiting attempts to require RFID use for livestock. Wisconsin has no intention to mandate animal identification, but has offered an incentive program similar to Michigan's.New Hampshire's House of Representatives approved HB-203, requiring warning labels on consumer goods and identity documents containing RFID tags or other tracking devices, as well as regulating the use of RFID for tracking individuals, and establishing a commission on the use of tracking devices in government and business. The bill was sent to the N.H. Senate to be assigned a hearing committee.Most countries outside the United States have not yet passed such laws.
http://www.rfidjournal.com/article/articleview/2093 http://www.rfidjournal.com/article/articleview/3168/ , http://www.rfidjournal.com/article/articleview/2093

RFID VIRUS

An RFID virus is malicious code inserted into an RFID tag to alter or corrupt data in an RFID (radio frequency identification) system. The deliberate creation and spreading of this type of virus is called RFID hacking.

RFID technology, which uses tiny radio frequency (RF) transmitters and receivers to uniquely identify objects, is an increasingly popular alternative to bar code technology in supply chain management. RFID does not require direct contact or line-of-sight scanning. Instead, RFID tagging uses small transponders, called tags, for identification and tracking purposes. The total system includes:

* Transponders placed on or in objects to be identified
* A set of read/write devices at security checkpoints
* A host system application for data collection, processing and transmission
* An identification database, also known as a back-end database

If the back-end database is altered or corrupted, an entire security network can be compromised. For example, the system may interpret a bogus tag as a valid one, allowing criminals or illegitimate cargo to bypass RFID-based security systems. Conversely, the system may fail to acknowledge valid RFID tags, causing confusion and delays in transportation systems.

There is disagreement among experts as to the actual threat posed by would-be RFID hackers. Nevertheless, RFID hacking has been carried out under controlled conditions to demonstrate the potential vulnerability.

http://securitymanagement.searchsecurity.com/security/kw;RFID+virus/contentGuide.htm

How to hack RFID-enabled credit cards for $8 ?

A number of credit card companies now issue credit cards with embedded RFIDs (radio frequency ID tags), with promises of enhanced security and speedy transactions.
Hacker and inventor Pablos Holman shows Xeni how you can use about $8 worth of gear bought on eBay to read personal data from those credit cards -- cardholder name, credit card number, and whatever else your bank embeds in this manner. Fears over data leaks from RFID-enabled cards aren't new, and some argue they're overblown-- but this demo shows just how cheap and easy the "sniffing" can be

http://tv.boingboing.net/2008/03/19/how-to-hack-an-rfide.html

RFID threats...!

Unfortunately, businesses and governments are not the only ones interested in RFID. Civil liberties groups, hackers and criminals are also keenly interested in this new development, albeit for very different reasons. Civil liberties groups are concerned about RFID technology being used to invade people's privacy; RFID tags enable unethical individuals to snoop on people and surreptitiously collect data on them without their approval or even knowledge. For example, RFID-enabled public transit tickets could allow public transit managers to compile a dossier listing all of a person's travels in the past year -- information which may be of interest to the police, divorce lawyers, and others.
Following possible threats from use of RFID are listed as below:
1- Infringement of the right to privacy and data protection”
 Identification and profiling of a person
 Unnoticed remote reading without line-of-sight
 Use of RFID for law enforcement purposes
2- Infringement of the right to personality
3- Infringement of the right to human dignity
4- Unfair competition
5- Labor law violations
In next posts I’ll try to describe these threats in a detail.