Identification devices cause consumer concern

i got this article from a friend, John Lochridge, who won't give in and get a blog. :-)
good stuff. i personally haven't made up my mind about RFID yet.

Identification devices cause consumer concern
By JOHN LOCHRIDGE
Special to Today
Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) devices are called "the barcodes of the future."
They have the potential to allow everything, indeed every person, on the planet to be given and tracked using unique serial numbers which can be identified from a distance of a few inches or a few feet using radio waves.
Katherine Albrecht is a well-spoken, articulate speaker, Harvard doctoral student, and the founder of Consumers Against Supermarket Privacy Invasion and Numbering (CASPIAN), the 10,000 member consumer privacy advocacy group which is concerned about the implications of the use of RFID technology.
Albrecht is the author of Spychips: How Major Corporations and Government Plan to Track Your Every Move with RFID published by Thomas Nelson. She has been featured by CNN, NPR, Business Week and numerous other media outlets.
This past Saturday, Albrecht and Duncanville area residents held signs in front of the Wheatland Wal-Mart to protest Wal- Mart¹s trial use of RFID devices (called "tags") on products sold to consumers at Dallas area Wal-Mart stores.
According to Albrecht, quoted in the engineering journal EE Times (Dec. 2, 2003): "This technology is like an electronic frisk or a form of X-ray vision, It really could create a total surveillance world. It¹s very dangerous."
RFID technology has been getting a lot of press and gaining a lot of momentum. Retailers want to use RFID tags to more efficiently track inventory but privacy advocates are concerned about the reality that the ability to track an item brings with it an ability to track the owner of an item.
Albrecht points out that manufacturers are experimenting with embedding RFID tags into footwear and clothing, including undergarments such as bras.
RFID readers can read through outer clothing to identify what a person is wearing or to track a customer from the time of purchase.
Retailers aren¹t the only ones interested in using RFID. With what seems "spookily" appropriate for a pre-halloween announcement, it was a year ago this month that the FDA approved RFID chips for implanting under the skin of humans to keep track of medical information.
Former HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson has since announced that he intends to be "chipped" using this technology.
Just this year, RFID was proposed for tracking every car in Texas. In April of this year, Texas state representative Larry Phillips (R-Sherman) proposed HB 2983 which initially called for embedding RFID tags into vehicle registration stickers, allowing car registration information to be read and collected by a scanner from a distance.
The requirement for RFID tags was removed from the legislation as a result of negative public reaction regarding the issue.
Elsewhere in Texas RFID is already used to track public school students. RFID tags are placed in Spring ISD student ID cards to track thousands of students in the district.
Dallas residents can expect to hear more about RFID in the future. The Dallas technology community is very interested in the technology. According to the Metroplex Technology Business Council, there are over 100 local firms actively involved in the development of RFID technology.
Albrecht quotes RFID industry research as indicating that over three-fourths of consumers are leary of RFID technology.
Despite this, industry documents show that consumers apathy could still result in the widespread implementation of this technology.
Albrecht says that its fine if stores want to use RFID to track crates and pallets -- but thinks the line needs to be drawn at item-level tracking which brings consumers into the equation. She opposes efforts that result in consumers being forced to buy products containing RFID devices.
Place a call to Wal-Mart (1-800-WAL-MART) and let them know what you think too. For more information, you can visit CASPIAN¹s websites at NOCARDS.ORG and SPYCHIPS.COM.
John B. Lochridge lives in the Dallas area and works as a technology consultant. he can be reached by e-mail at johnets@earthlink.net.

i've seen and read both sides of the issue and can understand both sides.
the problem with technology is that the more it encroaches on our lives, the less privacy we have.
take a look at the movie Minority Report. I think that's what we're heading to.
advertising is becoming more and more targeted. you already have cookies on your machine that will keep track of when and where you go online.
businesses want to target their audience. i think that's why we're seeing less and less advertising in newspapers.
car dealers and businesses alike are turning to the internet and television and targeting specific audiences.
researches are already working on cars that drive and fly themselves.
and for that to happen satellites and other devices will have to keep a constant tab on where vehicles are at, within inches.
we either have to accept technology, or move back into an Amish state.