Privacy advocates: RFID technical review needed

WASHINGTON -- Privacy advocates called for the U.S. Federal Trade Commission or other government agencies to initiative a comprehensive assessment of the potential effects of RFID (radio frequency identification) technology, during an FTC workshop on RFID Monday.

The FTC or other agencies could conduct an "impartial" assessment of RFID and its potential effects on privacy, said Beth Givens, director of the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse. Some advocates who trumpeted RFID's potential to reduce supply-chain costs called for a public education campaign to educate the public on the potential positive uses of RFID, but Givens said a public campaign needs to include potential privacy concerns.

"It's very important to distinguish between a true consumer education campaign and a public relations campaign," she said.

RFID uses small computer chips and antennas that are integrated into a paper or plastic label. Those chips can then be read by an electronic scanner from distances upward of 25 feet (750 centimeters). Wal-Mart Stores Inc. plans to phase in use of RFID, with major suppliers of its north Texas stores required to use RFID chips on pallets and cases by January 2005. The U.S. Department of Defense plans to require suppliers to use RFID tags by early 2005.

Even though most panelists at the FTC workshop said widespread item-level RFID tagging, on products such as clothing and electronics, is years away, it's not too early to start thinking about the privacy implications, Givens said. Growing media coverage of RFID and privacy concerns is why a large-scale technology assessment is needed now, she said.

The day-long RFID workshop in Washington, D.C., included panel discussions on current and anticipated uses of RFID chips and on best practices for using the information stored on RFID chips. Advocates of RFID talked of its potential for makers of consumer goods, retailers and even consumers. RFID will allow retailers to track products in their supply chains, making for a more efficient, and cheaper, movement of goods, said Dan White, technical evangelist for RFID in the New Technologies Retail Solutions Division of NCR Corp.

A major problem at retail stores is products being misplaced on the shelves, but a more efficient supply chain will eventually result in lower prices to consumers, White said. "The key thing in retail is if you can't find it, you can't sell it," he said.

Eventually, consumers will be able to buy RFID chips and readers, and find things that are easily lost, including car keys and TV remote controls, White said.

Most consumers, however, do not know what RFID is, said John Parkinson, vice president and chief technologist at Capgemini SA. In an Internet survey released Monday by Capgemini and the National Retail Federation, 77 of respondents said they were unfamiliar with RFID technology. A majority of respondents identified several potential benefits, including reduced costs to consumers, faster recovery of stolen goods, and faster product recalls.

But a majority of respondents also expressed concerns about how consumer data would be used, whether consumers would be subjected to more direct marketing, and whether consumers could be tracked using RFID chips.