Mike Healan wrote:Certain e-commerce companies are promoting some very scary plans for RFID tags and sensors. RFID tags are tiny radio transceivers which transmit a short code identifying themselves when a signal is received from an RFID reader device. When embedded into merchandise, these tags allow a person with a reader to know exactly what the merchandise is, where it was bought, how much it cost and, potentially, who bought it.
One company, Accenture Technology Labs in Chicago, has created medicine cabinets and even bedroom furniture with embedded RFID readers. These readers are, of course, connected via the internet to certain e-commerce web sites. Imagine your own furniture detecting your new clothes and prescription drugs and reporting them to some marketing company over the internet. The reason for doing this is so that these companies can target very specific advertising at you.
"Imagine your own furniture detecting your new clothes and prescription drugs and reporting them to some marketing company over the internet."
I am confused about this part. I thought RFID tags only sent out an identifying signal on a specific frequency, generally so people could locate the position of whatever item the RFID tag is attached to. I haven't heard of one that can transmit data based on its surroundings, although I suppose it could be possible. Sounds kinda like fearmongering to me.
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Mitth`raw`nuruodo wrote:I haven't heard of one that can transmit data based on its surroundings, although I suppose it could be possible.
The tags are embedded in the products you buy. Your sofa is constantly sending out a signal, and when the tag in your brand new Levis receives the signal it signals back. The sofa then transmits back to whoever that you you now own a pair of Levis.
The most basic assumption about the world is that it does not contradict itself.
There's little chance RFID tags on clothes can survive a single wash & dry cycle, and if they somehow did a quick zap in the microwave will take care of them. As for built in readers in furniture, it doesn't matter as long as they can't connect, and in any case I doubt they can be hidden well enough that I can't find and kill them.
For computers and possibly TV it is a concern since the devices can be embedded in them and automatically log and send data without my knowledge or control. They'd also be damn near impossible to find and kill unless I feel like spending a week tracing circuits and looking up spec sheets. And if they do it right and integrate the devices into vital components such as the CPU, well, we're fucked unless some genius figures things out and releases a crack for it.
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Say, do you want it to be a threesome with your wife? Or a foursome with your wife and sister-in-law? I'm up for either.
For what good it will do me, I have just written my congressman. Scrounging what little faith in the system I had left in order to do so.
Hoipefully companies will have to disclose the presence of these tags?
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Sounds kinda like fearmongering to me.
