By Jo Best, 18 November 2004 15:45
NEWS Microsoft has told people worried about the tracking capabilities of RFID chips to wrap themselves in tin foil.
Speaking yesterday at Microsoft's IT Forum in Copenhagen, Steve Riley, security programme manager at Microsoft, said consumers will have to be proactive if they want to 'kill' the RFID tracking tags when they leave a store - and he joked about the possible ways to do it.
With the tracking technology making it theoretically possible to discover information about people's buying habits remotely - albeit currently at a short distance - some civil libertarians and consumer groups have called for a moratorium on RFID until privacy issues are worked out.
"Most retailers won't put in a deactivate [for RFID tags]," Riley said, "so it's up to you to block it."
For those favouring direct action, there are a few ways to foil the tags, Riley said: "Microwave it for five seconds - but that's not really appropriate for everything that might contain RFID."
Another possible solution is blocking signals from the RFID transmitter by covering the tagged product in aluminium foil. Joking about a somewhat unconventional workaround RFID tags, Riley said: "If I'm stealing something, I'm going to put aluminium foil in my pant leg. I'm going to wrap it around these razors I'm stealing."
While privacy implications are proving one of the barricades for retailers trying to get RFID into shops and into product packaging, some consumers might do well to keep an eye on their pockets as well as their data.
Using contactless, RFID-enabled credit cards - where payments are made by holding the card near a reader - has been found to increase sales by 30 per cent.
However, for businesses, the main worry should be customers' data and keeping it secure.
"Think about what you collect... Think about a chief privacy officer," Riley said. "It makes sense in a large company. If youre a small company, have someone who has that function. Please don't locate them in the sales and marketing."
"Have a privacy policy - you've got to be able to measure it," he said. "You don't know if it's effective or not if you can't measure it. If you can't measure it, it's just noise."
Comments
There are 7 comments. Join the discussion
1. Roger Huffadine
Contactless RFID credit cards?
Now that would be useful - no need to stuff wires into ATMs or use cameras - a cheap radio scanner will be all the felon needs.
2. Ron Fellows
So RFID credit cards increase sales by 30%? Hardly surprising.....I pick up an item which has an RFID tag and walk past a till-point with my RFID-ready credit card outside my tinfoil trouser pocket and bingo! ;-)
3. John Small
Tin foil trousers would have the additional advantage of protecting you from the camera phones that see through clothes...
4. Michael Oldman
In the UK, companies already need a "privacy officer"; except we call them data controllers and they are required under the data protection act.
5. James Button
RFID - Drivepast consumer-item location for your local burglar - The main problem will be having a decent analysis program to decode and summarise the responses in order to identify the best places to 'shop'.
I presume the Biometric ID cards, and the new passports will also have RFID
so they can tell if you've taken them to go on holiday.
6. Colin Milner
Tinfoil trousers would keep us men warm as toast, obviating the need for the male pill ..... hence there would be no need to prevent us from being tracked and traced by RFID!
7. royston
imagine sex stores useing rfid! discover if the ceo etc is as kinky as the secretary says he is. or comence divorce proceedings if hes bought something kinky for the secratery and not his wife!!?? *the mind boggles at the usages*