RFID tags consist of a microchip and a tiny antenna that transmits data from the chip to a reader. The reader is activated whenever the antenna comes into range and the data can be used to trigger an event – such as ringing up a purchase or ordering more stock.
The tags have already been tested in some shops. Tesco trialled the tags in Gillette razor blade packaging in its Cambridge store; Wal-Mart and Marks & Spencers have also tested the new technology for stock management purposes.
But pressure groups are worried by the technology, which is widely expected to replace the bar code.
A statement urging caution has been signed by, among others, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Electronic Privacy Information Center, the Foundation for Information Policy Research, and Privacy International.
The statement calls on manufacturers and retailers "to agree to a voluntary moratorium on the item-level RFID tagging of consumer items until a formal technology assessment process involving all stakeholders, including consumers, can take place."
It continues:
"...the development of this technology must be guided by a strong set of Principles of Fair Information Practice, ensuring that meaningful consumer control is built into the implementation of RFID. Finally, some uses of RFID technology are inappropriate in a free society, and should be flatly prohibited. Society should not wait for a crisis involving RFID before exerting oversight."
The full position statement is available at:
www.privacyrights.org/ar/RFIDposition.htm
