The Radio Frequency Identification Device (RFID)

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that RFID chips can be attached, often without notice, to all sorts of products, such as clothing and books, and can be use to monitor and control the supply chain in ways similar to the bar code, which the RFID is being developed to replace. The author points out that some examples of the consumer use of the RFID are in a library where the reader need only to walk in front of a shelf and can immediately see on a screen a list of all the books and their contents. For another example, parents in amusement parks can locate their children by putting a RFID on their children and then locating them on a special "kidspotter" map of the park. The paper stresses that, despite the clear advantages of RFID, there is a concern among privacy activists because RFID tags, so small that they can go undetected, can be embedded in any product or article of clothing and even under the skin of a person and then can be used to record information about their activities, tracking anyone with a tag on them.

Table of Contents
History
Beneficial Social Impact
Deleterious Social Impact or Potentially Dangerous Social Impact
Personal Privacy
Information Security
Analysis of Social Impact
Future Impact of the Technology

From the Paper:

"While in the 1980's RFID was primarily used for commercial applications, the 1990s saw RFID enter the consumer market. Toll systems throughout the US and Europe became widespread and started gaining major use. Toll systems were adopted by Kansas, Oklahoma, Georgia, Maine, and New York, Massachusetts, and quite a few other states. Standardization became a big issue with all these systems, leading to the Title 21 standard and the EZ-Pass Interagency Group, both of which were formed in an effort to provide consistent toll standards in different regions of the US. Payment and access systems were developed, such as the speedpass payment system used by Mobile gas stations, various skipass systems and gated community access setups. Automobile related RFID systems also were implemented in larger scale including remote entry and ignitions systems."

More papers on The Radio Frequency Identification Device (RFID):

• Research Paper # 118767 : "Implementing RFID Systems in Theme Parks"
• Analytical Essay # 142201 : "RFID Technology"
• Research Proposal # 110595 : "RFID Middleware Proposal"

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