New Targets
RFID Chips and Your Privacy
By Mary O. Foley
You
probably aren’t aware of it, but some of today’s most modern
conveniences are provided by tiny computer chips. For example, you
may have a gadget in your car that automatically pays a toll bridge
fee as you drive through the toll booth. This is accomplished with a
computer chip. Or you may use a security card to gain access to your
office building. This, too, is made possible by a computer chip.
Many of
these computer chips communicate information about your purchases,
your credit card numbers, and even your identity. These special chips
are a type known as radio frequency identification (RFID). The chips
send data over radio signals to special antennas, or "readers."
From there, the data goes into a computer database.
RFID
chips are embedded into a growing number of items you have in your
wallet or in your car, and they may soon be added to items you buy in
stores. RFID chips are increasingly being used in payment systems,
such as charge cards and gas station express payment fobs. Many
people appreciate the convenience because it eliminates the step of
swiping a charge card. Instead, you merely wave your wallet or key
chain over a scanner. In addition, since 2006, U.S. passports contain
these chips, which hold a digital image of the passport holder. Some
states are requiring that driver’s licenses feature the technology,
too.
As the
chips get smaller -- some are no bigger than a grain of rice -- and
cheaper, companies such as Procter & Gamble, General Motors and
others are experimenting with installing them in products sold in
stores. Experts predict that someday you will go to a supermarket,
load your cart with goods tagged with RFID chips, and walk out the
door without having your items rung up by a cashier. The price of the
goods will be automatically tallied and deducted from your
RFID-enabled credit card simply by walking past a bank of antennas.
Convenience Versus Security
While
RFID technology allows faster commuting or more convenient shopping,
it may also allow others to know more than they should about you. The
fact that these chips can be scanned invisibly, and can carry so much
private data, has triggered concerns that personal information could
fall into the wrong hands. Some privacy advocates deride the
technology as “spychips,” asserting that any person with an RFID
reader, standing in the right place, could pilfer the data for
reasons ranging from identity theft to government surveillance.
“There
is a threat to individuals, and to our society,” argues Ari
Schwartz, deputy director of the Center for Democracy and Technology
(CDT), a nonprofit civil liberties advocacy group. Those at risk of
being stalked, such as victims of domestic violence or law
enforcement officials, could be most vulnerable, he says. As for
society, over time, the use of this technology could cost Americans
their civil liberties. “We could find ourselves living in a
‘Minority Report’ kind of world,” he warns, referring to the
2002 movie about government surveillance gone awry.
But RFID
proponents note that all new technologies have their detractors.
“Many of these same arguments were raised with barcodes,” notes
Mark Roberti, editor of RFID
Journal magazine.
“There are probably 30 to 40 million people in the U.S. every day
who carry RFID transponders on their body or in their car and there
has never been a single instance of anyone having their privacy
infringed,” he claims.
Moreover,
some IT security experts note that the risk of eavesdropping is much
greater over a cell phone, which has its own power source -- unlike
most RFID chips -- and can be tracked over many miles instead of
simply a few feet.
How
to Foil RFID Chips
Since
RFID chips are likely to become more prevalent, we need to be aware
of the risks. If you want to evade trackers, Roberti offers the
following tips:
CDT’s
Schwartz adds that some companies, such as GM, are responding to
consumer concerns by developing information for their owner’s
manuals or product labels about how to disable or remove RFID chips.
Schwartz says: “In terms of protecting consumers, we see this as
progress.”
Most
experts say that there is little immediate risk to consumers from the
current uses of RFID chips for toll collection, payment systems, and
identification. In fact, there may in fact be benefits in terms of
the convenience of use. But it is a good idea for consumers to be
aware of developments of this new technology so that they can best
protect themselves.
