RFID VS Bar Code Consumers need to know of RFID

[Zombiewire]

Katherine Albrecht, director of CASPIAN and a doctoral researcher at Harvard University"It's a shame not to think, 'maybe we are deploying a technology that has real privacy concerns' and reconsider it. Instead, their approach is 'How can we get this past people?'

"In most cases, asking how a company exploring item-level RFID tagging can protect their customers' privacy is like asking a fox how he can best ensure the safety of your chickens."
Katherine Albrecht, CASPIAN

http://www.BoycottTesco.com

"We believe Tesco's decision to pursue item-level RFID tagging is
irresponsible," Albrecht added. "We're calling on consumers to boycott
the chain until the practice is stopped. If people must shop at Tesco,
we are asking them to reduce their purchases. After all, as Tesco says,
'every little helps.

until they stop putting RFID tags on consumer products

In freedom,
Katherine Albrecht, CASPIAN


I know we do not shop at Tesco but we are next inline for the RFID.

www.zombiewire.com

[large]

While there's two sides to this particular technology . . Those against it who fear the writings of George Orwell are coming to pass . . Be careful of what you wish for . .

You're gonna create another "thereoughtabealaw!" which will cause our elected 535 Idiots to react . . .

But, from what I've read since being made aware of the technology by your comments on this site, I think they're here . . . The Government, especially the DOD, has made a very large investment in the technology and if they have it already . . . try making laws against it! It's already in use on all of our toll roads, the DOT uses it for a myriad of things, the State DOTs use it . . The Dept of Agriculture is starting to advocate it's use in the livestock area, . . . I think it's a Dead Horse . . . No use flogging it anymore.

No pun intended!

[Zombiewire]

RFID has not taken the bar code over yet and will not for sometime. Do you get it? I do not think you get it!
Once this happens you will take the RFID with you home and eventually outside your home anyone with a reader will be able to be scan your inventory.
Dead horse! It has just started this January as mandate for all pallets to be chipped. Do not you see the privacy issue with RFID? RFID will be imbedded in your cloths, shoes, pants, shorts, and underwear and when you walk in to a store or wherever there is a RFID reader and that will be in many places, they will know that your Name is Large from Pueblo and you purchased your shirt from Wal Mart, Macys and underwear at Sears. They will know more about you then you think. You will lose your privacy. Maybe losing your privacy does not bother you but it does many more Americans and me so until this happens I want to inform as many consumers about the implications. I am not the type of person who just sits and watches and says there is nothing we can do.
As your comment “dead horse” I can say that about any topic that may be mentioned here and that is a easy way out. www.zombiewire.com

[large]

At the risk of sounding like a smart**** I have to say . . .

We're talking about the weather here . . . It's one thing to piss and moan about "the Sky is Falling" . . quite another to figure out what kind of 4 X 4 is gonna be needed to prop it up and where to get it!

OK, we have a problem . . As you know as much as you do about it . . How do we change what is happening? Boycotting these stores isn't going to be effective, because, the average American neither knows nor gives a damn about it. If they did, they'd never accept a credit card!

Your Credit Card Bank has all the information you don't want RFID to know about already! And there's no law saying they can't divulge that information! It's just that nobody has wanted to know that bad yet, or they don't want the cost of keeping that kind of information. Can you imagine the amount of Computer Storage needed for the kind of information you're talking about? Only NSA (None Such Agency) has that kind of Computer power and according to the 9/11 Hearings, we can't afford them!

The credit card, the computer, these two things have led to the invasion of privacy to the lives of even people who don't use either. RFID is probably just another step. But are laws like HIPAA the answer . . ?

I hope not!

[Lexi]

I see the matter as buyer beware. If we don't shop at stores that use those tags, they'll lose business and will have to either close down or stop using the tags.

HOWEVER....

I can forsee this becoming a law that they are to be used, what we need to do is stop that before it happens by OUTLAWING them in the first place.

So, while I am against the "ottabealaw" idea, in this case, there will probably be a law one way or the other....best to have a preventative law at this point.

I still think that it's got to be unconstitutional....we buy products and take them to our homes....that's an invasion of privacy to track us outside of the store like that...I can forsee all kinds of problems associated with it.

[Zombiewire]

You will not be able to buy nor sell unless you buy/sell product with the RFID chips in the product. You can wait until this happens or you can get informed now about the RFID and how it will infringe on your privacy rights in the future. There is a reason why only 10% of the consumers are aware of this transition and you must ask your self-why is this. The infrastructure is being set up now. There is a database already set up formed from the Value Card that consumer use. So the dated base is already there and being expanded.

Have you heard of the Verichip? That is another RFID in use where people are being injected with the chip and now they can purchase items by a simple scan. Now you tell me where this is taking us?

[large]

Aha! You watched CSI:Miami the other night, didcha?

Back to the point I made . . . The average citizen neither knows nor cares. And if it's "High Tech" and convienient, the average person won't even think twice. The only objection I can think of about having a chip injected under the skin is, If you want to remove it, hmmm, that's gonna hurt . . . Heh, heh . . .

Got five little dogs, not one of them has objected. 'Course I haven't had to have it removed from any of them either.

Like I said, if someone wants that information about you now, and you either use a Check Card or a Credit Card . . you're done . . They can already find out. The only thing, as I said, is the cost of keeping the information, once they have it.

AOL is in the information business, but they have to use special compression software because they can't afford the Hardware they need just to send e-mail around. Can you even imagine the Computers needed to keep the kind of information you're talking about?

Besides, unless you're another David Koresh or a fugitive, it really doesn't amount to a Tinker's Damn. They're going to use the technology until something better and more all-encompassing comes along, and there's not a whole hell of a lot we, the consumer, can do about it. Remember, Bar Codes met with the same objections when they were introduced . . .

This windmill has gotten bigger than something ol' Qixote would've charged . . . and it's going to take some very level headed introspection to legislate something that will work for the consumer.

And probably, as far as legislation goes, anything written will probably end up in a drawer of some committee, and the necessary Legislators will get their checks from the lobbyists of Northeast Positronics, or wherever, and our little conversation will never have been . . .

[Zombiewire]

What ever!
What i stated is on this board and somone will read it.
I invested .39 cents a share in some RFID stock last January and now it is at $4.75 a share.

You keep thinking the way you do. And they said global warming was a mith. It is important for people to expand their thinking and to find out if there really is a flat world out there. This is how to pick a good stock.

[dkelly]

Surely there will be a way to disable these chips once you get them into your home. and will these things run on batteries or how are they powered. the batteries will eventually die wont they?

[Zombiewire]

There is only one disabler that will Zap the RFID. The name of that tool is Tagzapper. You can see the link at www.tagzapper.com .The chip is run off a semiconductor. This is why they will never die. Being that they are considered the chip that will never die hence the terms zombie chip which is a common term in the RFID world. This is why I named my RFID News site ZombieWire. I can answer any question you may have. ZW

[large]

Well now, this really makes sense, railing against a specific technology. And then buying stock in it!

And Global Warming . . Been going on since a little after 710 AD . . That was the onset of a "Mini Ice Age"* and it got colder, now the polar cap is retreating as it was prior to that. Why do you think the Vikings called it "Greenland"? Of course our CO2 generation might be helping a little also.

*This is conventional wisdon, Re: Physical Geography, Second Edition, by Ralph C. Scott. There are others, but this is the easiest read . . .

[Lexi]

Well now, this really makes sense, railing against a specific technology. And then buying stock in it!

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

[Zombiewire]

(Well now, this really makes sense, railing against a specific technology. And then buying stock in it!)

Look I can be sardonic about your simple topics all day long or your comments about this and that.

Yes I bought stock it ADSX and others because I knew it would spike up and it did. If you cannot beat them then infiltrate them. Have you ever read the Art of War? I guess not.

Zombie Wire is all about informing consumers . I guess you missed that in my last five posts. Let me tell you that there is no stopping the RFID movement by no means of reality; however’ it is very important to know what may infringe on your simple life. And if you have nothing positive to say about the post I set up on this blog then please post on another topic. I am not seeking out your post and I do not need your sappiness.


YOu want to see live feed on RFID link here http://businessweek.feedroom.com/iframeset.jsp?ord=217801

[Lexi]

Personally, I would not infiltrate them by purchasing their stock. I'd much rather infiltrate by working for the company...at the Executive Level.

[Zombiewire]

Great as this is why I have an RFID employement page. But hey! If you know a stock is going to hit, buy it. other then that you would be a fool.

[large]

This isn't a blog . . .

And if you hope to "Infiltrate" any Corporation by owning stock in it, you better own a whole bunch. Voting power is determined by the amount you hold . . one share, one vote . . . If you own enough stock to make a difference, you should have enough profit from your investment of $0.39 per share to retire . . NOW. Or if you own a little less than that, you should have a very tidy profit of just a little less than $50k or so, based on your statement a couple of replies up the thread.

I would also say I'm not trying to be a smart**** But I have done what you told everyone to do . . Go research your subject. I did, if you want references ( like the global warming one) I'll be glad to provide them. Unlike 48% of this country, I read, very well, and believe little of what I hear, until I can reinforce it with real facts.

I agree, to a point, that the RFID technology could be used to invade the privacy of the average citizen, and there should be a certain amount of concern. However it's a very large windmill to tilt at, and it has a very long headstart. Also, as I've said, the Banking Industry currently provides market studies to Corporations that would pay for them, and Intelligence to Countries who would pay for it.(Prof. Tom Barnett's Speech to the War College, 2004) As a matter of fact the long term Intelligence is almost completely provided by the World Banking Industry. Scary, Huh?

With the coming of a "Cash Free" Society (May never happen, but they're trying) the Banks will know more about you than Anybody . . Anywhere . . for any other reason! And they WILL sell your Information to those who want it and can pay for it. BANKS, Insurance Companies and Hospitals are the people responsible for the largest buildings being built in this country today . . And like a dog that licks his balls, it's because they can . . They're the ones with the money!

If you really want to rail against someone who will allow your personal information to be sold to the highest bidder . . go after the Banking Business! They hold the same ethics as the Governmental Represenatives . . . . .

[Zombiewire]

Leader: Tagging kids
January 21 2005
by silicon.com
And we don't mean graffiti writers

Post your comment here


This publication and doubtless a number of others in the mainstream press have today covered a primary school in Swansea looking to electronically tag its pupils. A similar move was taken last year by a Japanese school.

In the UK, today's news follows a similar recent story about a school in Loughborough using biometric fingerprint readers to check pupils in and out.

The educational establishments cite safety as an over-riding reason to keep track of where their students wander. The same argument has been made by owners of public attractions such as Legoland, ostensibly to cater to parents with young children - though cynics would point to the tactic as a way to monitor the way facilities are used and better market attractions as a result.
http://networks.silicon.com/lans/0,39024663,39127258,00.htm

[Zombiewire]

Now go play nicely with the privacy people...'



US clothing manufacturer Abercrombie & Fitch has finally admitted it is using RFID.

Last year, clothing labels belonging to the preppy clothing favourite - with the shop name blacked out but the company's logo still visible - were found at an RFID trade show.

At the time, representatives from the company displaying the tags, Checkpoint, said they were for display purposes only and Abercrombie & Fitch representatives said they could neither confirm or deny the clothing company's involvement with the technology. http://www.silicon.com/research/specialreports/protectingid/0,3800002220,39127337,00.htm

[Lexi]

In the UK, today's news follows a similar recent story about a school in Loughborough using biometric fingerprint readers to check pupils in and out.

I have friends and family in the UK, I haven't once heard of such a thing from any of them.

[Wahoo]

What ever anyone post on here you both need to be negitive on their statement. I think what zombiewire is doing is great deed and you to just shoot it down. zombie is correct on all of what he or she is talking about. I think Large really wants to lick his balls per his last post. You two need to go for a jog and relax, Wahoooooooooooooooooooo

and yes this is a form of a blog

[Lexi]

Wahoo....

Whom are you addressing? And, have you read this entire subject, or just the last post or two?

You'll find, if you've read it all, that no one is doubting that what Zombie is talking about presents any kind of issue. However, purchasing a little bit of stock in something that you claim is not good is questionable.

[Wahoo]

{{{{Whom are you addressing? And, have you read this entire subject, or just the last post or two?

You'll find, if you've read it all, that no one is doubting that what Zombie is talking about presents any kind of issue. However, purchasing a little bit of stock in something that you claim is not good is questionable.}}}}

There is nothing wrong with loading up on stock if you know the market will rise. I do not get that from Zombiewire comments that he/she thinks rfid is bad. I understand zombiewire as informing us of what zombiewire knows and has researched concerning the rfid. I read that you have posted ideas of your own and I do not see zombiewire going after you no Large. I enjoy both your topics and you should compliment each other with kindness. I like seing you up here Lexi
:D

[large]

Hey, hey, hey, here . . I don't totally disagree with Zombiewire. There is a problem here. Another invasive technology is being used more and more in consumer products, and the possibility of it being used past the point of Purchase is definitely there.

But, I contend that it's actually past comment now. To use the Vernacular; "They got us by the short hair now!" There really isn't any way of stopping the use of RFID now, short of legislation . . And I'm very sure some Asshole Lawyer will try to make a Gazillion Dollars off a Privacy Invasion Suit sooner or later. That should bring on legislation . . . usually does.

And I argue . . . The Banking Industry has more information right now about all of us, than anyone using RFID's for Inventory Control and Sales Information would want. They have a far longer headstart and while the Federal Government has made laws to protect us, we know they have more loopholes than a badly knitted Sweater!

Besides . . we're having fun, aren't we?

[Lexi]

Well,

I think it's interesting to see both ideas on the issue, actually. It shows some balance.

They say that to everything there are three sides...the left, the right, and the middle. lol

Anyway, I didn't even know these RFID tags existed until I read Zombie's post.

And, despite that I think they're a bad idea, I really don't think I could personally buy stock in the market of them...because then I'd be contributing to their effort. But that's just my opinion.

[Zombiewire]

Look beyond the stock buy please. I always need to make some money.
Look what I am doing. I am reaching out to the consumers all over the world. I am getting emails from all over the world. There are people wanting to tell their story about how they fear the RFID movement. I have been contacted by RFID News to do a story on my Tagzapper item, which will kill the rfid chip once you leave the store. People are concerned about what will come out from this. There are words written in the bible concerning the Mark and now there is a chip that is embedded in people who now can buy with a simple scan. If you need any proof of that then I have it all at my site with facts to back it all up. Inquire about a certain topic concerning rfid and I will answer it.
Since the November 5 2004 ZombieWire has received 7000 hits.

P.S. Tagzapper is the only tool that will kill the RFID chip ZW

also see my free blogs I have this on

[Lexi]

Zombie....

I don't want you to think I'm starting anything, because that is not my intention.

I'm very glad that you brought this matter up, as I had stated before, I didn't even know about these things until I first heard it from you. I certainly agree that these really do look like an invasion of privacy and should not be allowed to be used.

However, there are some that might think you to be a bit hypocritical for owning stock in something that you claim isn't good for the US, because owning this stock is the same as financially backing them, to some degree.

This is only my assessment, I have no delicate way of putting it, so I apologize if you find it offensive, as that's not my intention.

Again, I'm not here to pick a fight with you or start anything, I'm just being honest is all. I don't honestly know if I, personally, can overlook the stock thing, however I can say that I do heartily agree with you in that RFID tags should not be allowed to be used.

[Zombiewire]

Again, ZombieWire factor is all about INFORMING the consumer. If the consumer wants to buy stock in the lead I give them well thats ok. ZombieWire is there to INFORM. So what does that have to do with getting a bad rap about buying stock? I do not get your point. Get off it please. ZW

What do you think about the Tagzapper?




Zombie....

""""

Again, I'm not here to pick a fight with you or start anything, I'm just being honest is all. I don't honestly know if I, personally, can overlook the stock thing, however I can say that I do heartily agree with you in that RFID tags should not be allowed to be used.""""

[large]

Again, no big deal about the stock ownership. More power to you, and I hope you made a buck. No sour grapes, ***** it's good to see a commoner make out in the stock market, even if it isn't me.

But it is an odd way of "Fighting for a Cause" because usually buying a particular stock, especially when they're just starting up, is a definite bolster to the company or corporation you're railing against.

No biggie, just an observation. Kinda like being anti smoking, yet holding shares of American Tobacco, if you know what I mean . . Heh, heh . . .

Another observation would be, as an advocate for a cause, you need to debate the pros as well as the cons, so that you will project as a "Learned" debater, not just a totally anti-RFID advocate! Your argument is sound, but your reasoning appears to be totally negative as to RFIDs place in our technology. In other words you advocate that it shouldn't be allowed, it should be stopped dead in it's tracks, etc.

As I continue to say, we can't turn back the clock . . . so lets find common ground on WHAT we can do to keep it from becoming more intrusive, or telling some robot someplace that you've been a bad boy, heh, heh . .

[Zombiewire]

ZombieWire is all about informing consumers about RFID. There is no stopping RFID. The gears are in motion. Consumers need to know what they will be taking home. I know that ZombieWire cannot stop RFID and so ZombieWire will not take that stance. Consumers need to know now so they can get together and make laws so that RFID will not hinder their privacy. As of now there are no laws to completely protect the consumer. It is the wild wild west.

Bowen Seeks Balance in RFID Law

A California bill aimed at protecting consumer privacy will not interfere with supply chain applications, says its author, Sen. Debra Bowen.


March 1, 2004—California State Senator Debra Bowen (D-Redondo Beach), author of a new bill aimed at curtailing the use of RFID tags to track consumers, says her aim is not to ban the technology or limit its many potential positive uses. Instead, she hopes the bill, introduced last week, will facilitate those uses while protecting consumer privacy.
http://www.rfidjournal.com/article/view/812

[large]

Good Job! Let's hope CA. State Sen. Bowen succeeds in her effort.

I will forward the information I have gleaned in our conversations on to both of the Salazars and Mr. Allard. And will also make them aware of The Good Senator's efforts in California.

[Lexi]

Large, for best results, send them to Tom Tancredo.

[large]

Lexi, for best results . . send your personal letter to ALL of your Federal Represenatives, especially YOUR Congressman, John Salazar, Your Senators, Wayne Allard and Ken Salazar.

Then you won't get a letter back informing you "that while your interest is appreciated, you aren't one of his constituents and your letters would be better sent to your own represenative".

Your represenative is YOUR Represenative . . Tom is somebody else's. Trust me on this one. These guys are far more territorial than one would believe. Tancredo loves letters with his slant on Immigration, but most other issues . . "Tell YOUR Rep". He (Tancredo) has other people to reply to, apparently.

And this is not to say Tom is an exception. I have written letters to Chairmen of House and Senate Committees, speaking out on issues directly concerning something they were working on . . . And received such letters . . . . It's a "Chain of Command" thing, I guess. Or a "Brush Off". . . . Whatever.

[Zombiewire]

http://www.corfida.org/pages/1/

[Lexi]

Large...

Thank you for that advice.

Since I'm already somewhat politically active, I like to deal one on one with legislators...as in, face to face. You can rest assured that after my baby is born here within the next several days (hurry up, kid! UGH!), I'll be bringing this issue up and continuing research on it. I plan to bring it up at the State AND Federal levels.

I want to know whether any political action committees or citizens groups have been formed already to specifically counter this RFID thing, and if so, how I may be in contact with them. I'm talking about an actual organization. If there isn't one, then (and Zombie may be interested in this idea), who would like to form one?

When people join together, it's easier to get things done. That's the beauty of grass roots politics. :wink:

And, Large, while you're right about the territorial thing, there are some who aren't as territorial, and in the past, I've found them willing to take on certain issues whether I'm in their "territory" or not, simply because they know it's an issue that also affects their district. As well, if they stand up for something that the public will cheer about, they know they stand a better chance of being elected again. :wink:

[Zombiewire]

I saw this commercial! Have you?

I first saw the coke commercial last week where they are giving away a truck to the person who buys the coke can that has the RFID tag in it. The first commercial I saw stated "You buy it and we'll find you ANYWHERE!" they didn't mention that the person needs to activate the can first before they can track the can. Last night i saw the new revised version (I'm assuming) where they now say "You buy it and activate it and we will find it." I was just thinking maybe so many people had heard or RFID tags by now that even with a nice prize like a truck no one is willing to participate?

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/food/2004-05-09-coke_x.htm

http://www.marketingvox.com/archives/2004/07/02/us_military_scared_of_coke_gps_promo/
http://www.marketingvox.com/archives/2004/05/13/coke_launches_gps_can_promotion/

http://www.phonescoop.com/news/item.php?n=853

http://www.space.com/news/coke_gps_040702.html

http://www.rense.com/general53/cokee.htm

[Zombiewire]

[quote="Lexi"]Large...

Lexi I can do what ever it takes help out. Here is a link where you may find futher help. www.privacyrights.org. They are all over RFID.

Also there is Katherine Albrecht, director of CASPIAN and a doctoral researcher at Harvard University. She and I have talked and emailed. She is world known for being an advocate. You can see her works by going to ZW or to her site CASPIAN. http://www.spychips.com/


You must see Katherine here on video

http://businessweek.feedroom.com/iframeset.jsp?ord=80897

[Lexi]

Thank you, Zombie, that makes for a terrific start!

It's always best to have information/research in hand (especially from respectable sources) when approaching our legislators, and anyone else for that matter.

[jetstream]

Hi Zombie and all. I have listened to Kathrine Albrecht several times on a talk radio program, and she makes excellent sense. Its not anybodys business what i buy for me or my dog? A huge database to be tracked and profiled.
Perhaps zombie can let us know when ms Albrecht will be on the radio again, then we all tune in.

thanks pueblo chieftain for this forum.

[Wahoo]

Look what I found:

"RFID allows you to track, monitor, report and manage products, documents, assets and people more effectively and efficiently as they move between locations anywhere, at any time."
http://rfid.bemrosebooth.com/

this is crazy!

[Zombiewire]

Privacy advocates: RFID technical review needed
Today's breaking news


By Grant Gross
IDG News Service, 06/21/04

Privacy advocates called for the U.S. Federal Trade Commission or other government agencies to initiative a comprehensive assessment of the potential effects of 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.

http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2004/0621privaadvoc.html






Also: What is a Verichip you need to know. http://www.4verichip.com/nws_06272004.htm You will be at AWW

[Wahoo]

Hey Zombiewire. I have been reading more and more about RFID and found this. Incase you hav't read it yet. I love your site too,


Consumer concern over RFID tags
Supermarket aisle
Tags can be used to monitor stock levels
Consumers are very concerned about the use of radio frequency ID (RFID) tags in shops, a survey says.

More than half of 2,000 people surveyed said they had privacy worries about the tags, which can be used to monitor stock on shelves or in warehouses.

Some consumer groups have expressed concern that the tags could be used to monitor shoppers once they had left shops with their purchases.

The survey showed that awareness of tags among consumers in Europe was low.

The survey of consumers in the UK, France, Germany and the Netherlands was carried out by consultancy group Capgemini.

The firm works on behalf of more than 30 firms who are seeking to promote the growth of RFID technology.

The tags are a combination of computer chip and antenna which can be read by a scanner - each item contains a unique identification number.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4247275.stm

[Zombiewire]

10:15 AM Feb. 10, 2005 PT

Parents of elementary and middle school students in a small California town are protesting a tracking program their school recently launched, which requires students to wear identification badges embedded with radio frequency, or RFID, chips.

School superintendents struck a deal with a local maker of the technology last year to test the system to track attendance and weed out trespassers.
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Dawn and Mike Cantrall's daughter, a seventh-grader at Brittan Elementary School, poses at her Sutter, Calif., home, wearing the Radio Frequency Identification tag that the school asked her to wear. The Cantralls have filed a formal complaint against the school board, protesting the tag. The elementary school in this tiny rural school district has become an unlikely pioneer on the technology frontier by agreeing to test student I.D. cards designed to automatically take attendance.The badges use the same Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology that has been used to track livestock and store inventory _ and have outraged some parents with privacy concerns who say they were never consulted.
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But students and parents, who weren't told about the RFID chips until they complained, are upset over what they say are surreptitious tactics the school used to implement the program. They also question the ethics of a monetary deal the school made with the company to test and promote its product, using students as guinea pigs.

"This is not right for our kids," said Michele Tatro, whose daughter received a badge. "I'm not willing for anybody to track me and I don't think my children should be tracked, either."

The InClass RFID system was developed by two local high school teachers in Sutter, California, who helped found the company, InCom, that markets the system. Last year, the company approached the principal and superintendent of Brittan Elementary School District with the idea of testing InClass. The company offered the elementary school a donation of "a couple thousand dollars," according to the school's attorney, Paul Nicholas Boylan, as compensation for possible inconveniences caused by the test.

Boylan said the plan seemed like a good idea at the time and that the outcry was "completely unanticipated."

"But these issues are far more complicated than they first looked," he said, admitting that "this is a test of something new. No one knows whether this technology is going to work or not."

The system consists of a photo ID card affixed to a lanyard and worn around the neck. Embedded in the card is an RFID chip that contains a 15-digit number assigned to each student. As students pass beneath a doorway scanner on their way into a classroom, the scanner records the number and sends it to a server in the school's administrative office. The server translates the digits into names and sends an attendance list to the teacher's PDA, identifying all of the students who walked through the door. The teacher then visually verifies that the names on the PDA list match the students in the classroom.

The company installed the scanners and server last summer, but students only recently received the badges. InCom didn't return a call for comment, but according to a press release (PDF) on its website, the company plans to market the product nationwide next week at the American Association of School Administrators conference in Texas. Attorney Boylan said the school district stands to earn a royalty on future sales, and InCom has promised to install a schoolwide system at Brittan free of charge after the test is completed.

Brittan is the first school in California to use RFID, but not the first in the nation. Spring Independent School District near Houston, Texas, recently gave 28,000 students RFID badges to record when students get on and off school buses. The information is monitored by the police and school administrators to prevent child abductions and truancy. A handful of other schools have tested similar projects.

Nicole Ozer, technology and civil liberties policy director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California, said the technology's privacy threats are real.

"The proliferation of RFIDs and their use in identity documents is of serious concern," Ozer said. "Not just for people with children but for all of us in terms of monitoring."

Last December, when her 13-year-old daughter, Lauren, mentioned that students at her school would be getting "nametags," Michele Tatro thought nothing of it.

"They've always had student IDs to get into dances and get discounts at football games," Tatro said. "So I didn't even fathom the tracking (aspect). I had never heard of RFID until it came to my doorstep."

Then, when Tatro collected Lauren from school a few weeks ago, her daughter was furious.

"She shoves (the badge) in front of me and says 'Look at this!'" Tatro said. "She's mad and exasperated because someone has forced this upon her, and she feels like she can't do anything about it."

The Tatros and the parents of another student told the school, which includes grades kindergarten through 8th grade, that their children wouldn't participate in the project. The school sent a letter threatening disciplinary action if students didn't participate. So the parents contacted the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California and other civil liberties groups. A handful of other parents have withdrawn their children from the test project as well.

"We tried talking to (the school superintendents) twice," Tatro said. "They didn’t see our concerns."

Parents and civil liberty groups are also concerned about who has access to the collected data.

Boylan said the system offers security advantages since administrators would immediately know if a student didn't show up for class and could notify parents quickly. School officials could also quickly identify anyone who didn't belong on campus if they weren't wearing an RFID badge. But the main draw is a more efficient and accurate way to track and verify attendance in order to receive state funds.

"In California, the funding of schools is based on attendance," Boylan said. "Therefore we want (attendance) to be as accurate as we can. If we are wrong for whatever reason, it means we are getting less money than we should be getting." The system provides an audit trail to back up the district's claims if the state questions their numbers.

Boylan couldn't say how scanners above bathroom doors would help track attendance. InCom installed scanners outside 7th and 8th-grade classrooms at Brittan and above bathroom doors in a cafeteria. But Boylan noted that the bathroom scanners never worked properly anyway, and the school has since asked InCom to remove them.

Boylan said the school properly notified parents about the test, as the law requires, and got no complaints. He said the school held an open board meeting to discuss the test and posted public notices describing the essence of the test, but could not say where exactly the notices were placed.

"At the office, possibly in town," he said.

On Jan. 12, Brittan did announce in its weekly newsletter (PDF) that the school would soon require students to wear ID badges, but didn't mention RFID chips or scanners in classroom doors.

It said only that the school would soon issue "new safety ID badges" that students should wear "at all times" during normal school hours. The announcement also said students would be held accountable for the cost of replacing lost or destroyed badges.

Lauren Tatro said that when principal Ernest Graham distributed the badges, he didn't mention the RFID chips in them or give students a choice about wearing the badges.

"Students asked questions," Tatro said, "but they couldn’t really be answered very well. We got just the basics of what they were but nothing about the tracking."

A week after receiving parent complaints, the school scheduled a gathering to demonstrate the technology and answer questions, but notified parents only a day in advance.

"We're not opposed to technology," Tatro said. "We’re opposed to the way they're applying the technology. This is a test bed (to gauge) public acceptance of this. If they get away with it here, somebody else will try something even more invasive somewhere else."

Boylan said the school is currently discussing with the company how much data it needs to test the system. And the school has decided to allow students to opt out of wearing badges until it makes a formal decision about the status of the project next week.

But Tatro said that even if the school modifies or cancels the project, they plan to lobby schools to abandon such plans nationwide.

"We feel a bit of responsibility that we have to make this known," Tatro said. "We don't want to deal with another application of it somewhere else. Even if they retract, we will press forward in any lobbying to the appropriate people that we don't want this technology used in this application in society.

http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,66554,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_2[/quote][/code][/list][/list][/url]

[Zombiewire]

Here is the most informative news capture concerning RFID yet.





http://www.fox6.com/

[large]

Good coverage James . . .

I'm not sure, but I think that there will probably be laws enacted (do we need more?) to curb certain invasions of privacy on a federal Level. I do hope California at least is able to pass a "Model" of legislation that the courts will allow. From there, federal intervention usually isn't far away when it involves interstate commerce.

However, the Privacy Invasion I worry about has already happened and as I have written before, will continue . . Because? The Banking Industry is profiting from it . . The States are profiting from it . . the Insurance Companies are profiting from it.

And the Loser? You and me. Those of us with Checking Accounts, Debit Cards, Credit Cards, Driver's Licenses, or Insurance Policies . . Your names and the information attached is being sold to Data Storage Companies at an alarming rate . . And being sold to Almost anybody . . for as little as $5 per name, SS#, addresses, Phone #s and Driver's License #s . . .

Recently we saw HIPPA legislated in Congress . . And while it's "Overkill" it "assures" us privacy of our medical records and history. Apparently the Medical lobbys in this country weren't powerful enough to stop this law from being passed. But, so far, no amount of outcry (if any is there) seems to keep the Banking industry from peddeling our most intimate personal and financial history.

Call your Congressman, raise hell! It's YOUR identity floating around out there!

[Zombiewire]

A busy Saturday afternoon may leave shelves at a typical Wal-Mart bare of Pampers diapers or Ol' Roy dog food or even size-10 Levi jeans. Busy employees may get around to restocking only one of every 12 items cleared out, mainly because they don't know which shelves are bare.

"The lost sales are huge," said Simon Langford, the man with the ambitious assignment of fixing the problem by implementing a system that promises to keep better track of billions of items flowing through the planet's biggest retail operation _ and to make shopping faster and easier in the process.


More >> http://www.shns.com/shns/g_index2.cfm?action=detail&pk=RFID-03-31-05

[Zen Curmudgeon]

Good coverage James . . .

I'm not sure, but I think that there will probably be laws enacted (do we need more?) to curb certain invasions of privacy on a federal Level. I do hope California at least is able to pass a "Model" of legislation that the courts will allow. From there, federal intervention usually isn't far away when it involves interstate commerce.

RFIDs seem pretty tame to me compared to the mandatory GPS chips in all cell phones sold in the US of A. The FCC agreed with Law Enforcement (translation "Ashcroft") that requiring this locator chip would help in cases of kidnap or lost in the woods.

Personally, I've been chased more by cops than angry grizzlies, so maybe my take is a little biased...:)

However, the Privacy Invasion I worry about has already happened and as I have written before, will continue . . Because? The Banking Industry is profiting from it . . The States are profiting from it . . the Insurance Companies are profiting from it.

And the Loser? You and me. Those of us with Checking Accounts, Debit Cards, Credit Cards, Driver's Licenses, or Insurance Policies . . Your names and the information attached is being sold to Data Storage Companies at an alarming rate . . And being sold to Almost anybody . . for as little as $5 per name, SS#, addresses, Phone #s and Driver's License #s . . .

I've maintained for years that we all have a duty to lie to databases, corrupt the information. When I am faced with personal data requests, I make stuff up. My phone number is sometimes 555-1212 or Focus on the Family's. My address is usually 123 Main Street, ****omama, Oklahoma. My return email address is typically sp@m.sux. As for the SSN, commercial concerns are required by Federal law to provide you an alternative serial number if you decline to share your SSN. (The Feds can require your SSN but only in limited situations.)

Recently we saw HIPPA legislated in Congress . . And while it's "Overkill" it "assures" us privacy of our medical records and history. Apparently the Medical lobbys in this country weren't powerful enough to stop this law from being passed.
You have it a little backwards. The privacy and security measures in HIPAA were passed over the objections of the INSURANCE industry with the support of the health care industry. It was a helluva fight, though. The goal was to prevent uninformed use of personal health information to make decisions. For example, if your brother has AIDS, an insurer may refuse you coverage because of "risky behavior", i. e., living with an HIV positive person.

I don't claim the medical industrial lobbyists were all that concerned about little ol' us. It's pretty tough to file a lawsuit if you can't see the medical records, but this does seem to be one case in which we the peepul got a little ahead of the game.

(On the side, it's pretty easy to imagine a scene where a pro-HIPAA physician is campaigning a little while doing the annual prostate exam on his Congressman patient. To quote Chuck Colson, "Once you have 'em by the balls, their hearts and minds will follow".)

Case in point - when Bill Clinton had his coronary artery bypass graft at Columbia Med Center in NYC, some "journalists" offered hospital staff $$$ to peek and tell about his records. The same HIPAA mandated privacy measures that protect an uninsured crack ho ID'd a dozen or so unauthorized peepers and prevented disclosure.

Take Care -

ZC

[Lexi]

ZC, chased by the cops? For what?

And that use of the F-word--OMG! (Where did you learn that word?! Do we need to wash your typing fingers out with soap? Let's use the Anti-Stress Palmolive aroma therapy with Lavendar and Ylang Ylang Essences, it'll help you relax.)

Oh, and Zombie, don't read this part: I bought it on sale at WalMart. *ducking* [:D]

[Zen Curmudgeon]

ZC, chased by the cops? For what?

And that use of the F-word--OMG! (Where did you learn that word?! Do we need to wash your typing fingers out with soap? Let's use the Anti-Stress Palmolive aroma therapy with Lavendar and Ylang Ylang Essences, it'll help you relax.)

'Twasn't anything major and they couldn't have proven anything anyway - I was in Cinncinnati that night. :)

And I forgot about the webmaster's naughty noun rule. Guess I'll have to change my mythical city's name.

Take care -

ZC

[Zombiewire]

WE CAN STOP RFID IN PASSPORTS!
URGENT REQUEST - this will take only 5 minutes of your time

================================================== =============

WHAT: Tell the government you oppose spychips in passports
WHERE: http://www.rfidkills.com/action.html
WHEN: By Monday, April 4th, at 5:00 PM EST

Add your protest comment to the hundreds that have already been filed.
Then forward this email and spread the word!

================================================== =============
THE PROBLEM:
================================================== =============

SPYCHIPS PLANNED FOR PASSPORTS

The US Department of State plans to put remotely readable radio
frequency identification (RFID) spychips into all new passports. These
tiny computer spychips will use radio waves to broadcast the information
contained on our passports -- including name, date and place of birth,
passport number and photograph -- right through our wallets, backpacks,
pockets or purses, to nearby reader devices.

The data will not be encrypted or protected in any way. This reckless
plan could put Americans traveling overseas at risk of attack by
thieves, muggers, kidnappers, and even terrorists who could use portable
reader devices to zero in on the radio signals emanating from our
passports. Don't let the federal government put a spychip in *your*
pocket!

NOTE: While the maximum legal read range of the passport chips is only a
few inches, criminals can eavesdrop on official reader devices to
capture your data from across a room or potentially even down the block.

(Even if you don't have a passport, this still impacts you. Passport
chipping is a trial run for other documents. If we allow this to happen,
drivers licenses will be next.)

================================================== ==============
THE SOLUTION:
================================================== ==============

Join the nationwide outcry against spychipped passports!

Our friends at RFIDKILLS.COM have put together a quick and easy way to
submit your comments against spychipped passports directly to the US
State Department.

There are four days left to inundate the State Department with
complaints. Write a short note of opposition yourself (even something as
simple as "I oppose RFID in passports" is fine.) Then ask five friends
to do the same.

It will take only a few thousand Americans speaking out against this
plan to put an end to it. Please do your part!

Note: RFIDKILLS.com is not officially affiliated with CASPIAN, but we
know and trust the people behind it. We are supporting them every step
of the way. Please do the same!

In Freedom,

Katherine Albrecht
Founder and Director, CASPIAN Consumer Privacy

[Zen Curmudgeon]

These tiny computer spychips will use radio waves to broadcast the information contained on our passports -- including name, date and place of birth,
passport number and photograph -- right through our wallets, backpacks,
pockets or purses, to nearby reader devices. es to
capture your data from across a room or potentially even down the block.

Hey, can we use RFIDs to keep track of those pesky black helicopters? :)

Take Care -

ZC

[Zombiewire]

Hey, can we use RFIDs to keep track of those pesky black helicopters? :)

Take Care -

ZC


The question is to vague. I am sorry. ZW

[Zombiewire]

With iris scans unlocking VIP doors at Equinox gym, palm prints opening Bank of America safety deposit boxes, and fingerprint data paying for milk at the Piggly Wiggly, consumer lives are swiftly evolving into a biometric Shangri La — with personal characteristics as the new currency. http://www.nypost.com/business/42017.htm

[large]

James, this whole RFID thing is another one of the "Tommorrow" things that has gotten here . . a wonderful device for keeping track of things . . until somebody wants to keep track of you . . or me . .

Goes back to my thesis on ChoicePointe, et al . . . We have legislated Medical Information Privacy, a little overkill, perhaps, but at least an Insurance Company can't sell that information to ChoicePointe . .

Maybe it's time for some of our Reps to look at this issue, all of the Information and Data gatherer's and their methods need to be looked at and in the end, perhaps, regulated . .

But on the other hand, we can't just outlaw the technology, either . . That would be like saying, . . Credit Cards will be illegal . . . Checking Accounts . . will be illegal . . anything that would enable your bank to assemble information about you . . would be illegal . .

What should be illegal is the sale of this Data, from one source to another. Period. . . now anybody in the credit, banking, or insurance business is going to have a cow over this statement or if posed, the law . . even the Federal Government will get in here, because they conclude in the Homeland Security Act, that they need this information . . . which eventually, I believe will be ruled mostly unconstutional . . .

Bottom line is . . IF nobody can sell this information, they probably won't spend the money necessary to keep it!

But what do I know?

[Zombiewire]

Joseph Krull doesn't have a chip on his shoulder. But he has one in it.

The San Antonio security consultant is one of a small but growing number of people who essentially turn themselves into wireless network nodes for the sake of making personal information available to authorized parties with the wave of a radio frequency identification (RFID) scanner.

In Krull's case, the chip was implanted two months ago so hospital staff could access his medical information quickly in emergency situations. Others are "getting chipped," as those in the know call it, for everything from entertainment to personal safety.

Krull's chip is basically the same kind of RFID-based technology that's been used for years to tag dogs so they can be identified if lost, except the human chip works on a different radio frequency.
http://www.bio-itworld.com/news/040405_report7996.html

[Zombiewire]

APRIL 06, 2005 (COMPUTERWORLD) - A Texas legislator has filed a bill that would, in part, call for the state to replace vehicle inspection stickers with radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, otherwise known as transponders.
But the idea does not sit well with some privacy experts.

The tags would be used by law enforcement to ensure compliance with the state's insurance laws, according to Larry Phillips, the Republican state representative who proposed the bill.

"This is a system that would be used to reduce the number of uninsured drivers on the road. Right now it's at 26%," Phillips said.

The bill also calls for the transponders to be compatible with the automated vehicle registration and certificate of title system established by the Texas Department of Transportation. It would also require compatibility with the standards established by the Transportation Department and other agencies for use of toll roads and toll facilities, Phillips said.
http://www.computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/privacy/story/0,10801,100892,00.html

[large]

Good work . . .

time to tune up yer congressman about the whole Privacy issue . .

Wouldn't be so bad if they just "Gathered information" but they sell it to EVERYBODY!

[Zombiewire]

APRIL 06, 2005 (COMPUTERWORLD) - A Texas legislator has filed a bill that would, in part, call for the state to replace vehicle inspection stickers with radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, otherwise known as transponders.
But the idea does not sit well with some privacy experts.

The tags would be used by law enforcement to ensure compliance with the state's insurance laws, according to Larry Phillips, the Republican state representative who proposed the bill.

"This is a system that would be used to reduce the number of uninsured drivers on the road. Right now it's at 26%," Phillips said.

The bill also calls for the transponders to be compatible with the automated vehicle registration and certificate of title system established by the Texas Department of Transportation. It would also require compatibility with the standards established by the Transportation Department and other agencies for use of toll roads and toll facilities, Phillips said.
http://www.computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/privacy/story/0,10801,100892,00.html



Here it is. RFID will replace the bar code. The RFID tags will be embedded in most product as a can of beer. A policeman with the RFID reader may scan your vehicle. Once scanned the police will know that there is a 6 PAC of beer in your car and half a pack of breath mints in your pocket . Yes sharing the information is not a positive thing for the consumer ,likewise; Having a national data base storing all this information and something at the controls. Our every move will be recorded as the matrix movie. It is easy to figure this out. All you have to do is connect the dots.



I am not for drinking and driving but making a point.

[Zombiewire]

Dreams of better inventory management drive Wal-Mart to demand its suppliers use radio frequency identification tags.

By TERESA F. LINDEMAN
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette


A busy Saturday afternoon may leave shelves at a typical Wal-Mart bare of Pampers diapers or even size- 10 Levi jeans. Busy employees may get around to restocking only one of every 12 items cleared out, mainly because they don't know which shelves are bare.

"The lost sales are huge," said Simon Langford, the man with the ambitious assignment of fixing the problem by implementing a system that promises to keep better track of billions of items flowing through the planet's biggest retail operation - and to make shopping faster and easier in the process.

Radio frequency identification technology, casually known as RFID, is at the heart of that system. The idea behind it has been around a long time and has come into common use at Fast Trak toll lanes that allow drivers to breeze down the road now and pay a bill later.

The science that would make it possible to follow each box of cereal, each bar of soap and each T-shirt from the manufacturer to the warehouse to the sales floor and out through the cash register has yet to be perfected.

There's no agreement yet on standard technology, but if there were an RFID grocery store today, products would carry a selection of tags, ranging from 4-inch-by-6-inch rectangularversions to ones the size of a piece of gum, only flatter. Some would have two tiny antennas pointing out from the pinhead-size chip, others have one or even three.

The technology is expensive, sometimes awkward and raises worries among consumer groups who see it as yet another Big Brother-like attempt to chip away at shoppers' privacy.

Wal-Mart is determined to drive the research along. The $288 billion retailer's insistence that everybody else get on board, ready or not, may be the driving force behind a whole new approach to shopping. In that future scenario, consumers will casually dash out the supermarket door with a load of groceries instantly charged to their account, or retailers will implement a recall on bad meat simply by scanning RFID records.

In mid-2003, Wal-Mart demanded 100 suppliers be on board with radio frequency systems by January 2005. Boston research firm AMR Research estimates that the company's suppliers have, so far, collectively spent $250 million on the chore. An additional 200 top suppliers have been given a January 2006 deadline. The retailer plans to outfit 600 of its stores and 12 distribution centers by October.

The ripples from the project have spread through the retail supply chain and beyond. Retailers such as Target have issued their own mandates, and others such as Sears and Kmart are studying the technology.

A lab at the University of Pittsburgh is testing ways to make RFID chips more affordable for small companies. Genco, a warehouse logistics company in Blawnox, is advising clients how to implement the existing technology. A furniture chain has been discussing whether a system would fit in its showrooms.

"Wal-Mart's mandate is the reason everyone is doing it," said Cary Cameron, vice president of strategic technologies at Blawnox-based Genco.

Radio frequency identification is seen as the next great leap beyond the now-decades- old bar code.

RFID goes further by giving each item its own unique code that can be checked by electronic readers sending out radio waves and then recording the waves sent back by tags in the vicinity. Readers might be set up all along the supply chain to keep track of items as they move through.

In making his case on a recent industry conference call, Wal-Mart's Langford said RFID will protect manufacturers against counterfeiters, allow suppliers to see where goods are slowing down and help employees spend less time scouting through piles of back-room boxes.

When it tracked one store recently over a 24-hour period, the retailer found dozens of cases of goods pulled from the stockroom and then later returned because they were not needed. Multiply that across thousands of stores and it adds up.

Stores are not the only place errors add to retail expenses. Despite increasingly sophisticated warehouse systems, forklift operators in huge distribution centers buzzing around dozens of bay doors often place cases on the wrong truck, Cameron said.

http://www.ocregister.com/ocr/2005/04/08/sections/business/business_nation/article_471513.php

[large]

And yeah, doing a little reading about the little leaps in technology, baby steps, as you will. The transponders or readers don't have to be very close . . currently the CDOT Pass program for commercial trucking reads the windshield tag from over 20 feet at 75 MPH. Same with the Toll Road Passes . . never misses either, so I understand . . . .

Back to legislation . . . that's where this is going to have to go . .

By th' way James, how's th weather in S.D.? How ya doin?

[Zombiewire]

VeriChip is a small radio frequency identification device intended for use in a variety of identification and information applications. The inert transponder, inserted into the tissue under the skin, contains a unique 16-digit identification number. A small, handheld scanner is used to read this number. More info »



Use the provided menu(left-hand side of this page) to get more information on our products.






http://www.4verichip.com/verichip.htm

[Zombiewire]

And yeah, doing a little reading about the little leaps in technology, baby steps, as you will. The transponders or readers don't have to be very close . . currently the CDOT Pass program for commercial trucking reads the windshield tag from over 20 feet at 75 MPH. Same with the Toll Road Passes . . never misses either, so I understand . . . .

Back to legislation . . . that's where this is going to have to go . .

By th' way James, how's th weather in S.D.? How ya doin?



Man gas is high! OCH!

Well it dropped off today to a nice 75 degrees.

[Zen Curmudgeon]

I've been reading a bit about the RFID concerns and plans for use in retail, law enforcement, etc., and I have to admit to being confused about the degree of concern over a largely un-installed technology. Shouldn't we be more exercised about the domestic spying that already goes on?

My main question in this post is simple - what's new here? What is it about RFID that offers unprecedented data gathering about us by others? Everything I've read to this point talks about a new channel of informatiion, not development of new information per se. For instance, there is some concern about RFID passports. How is an RFID data stream read by a scanner different from a paper document read by a border guard? RFID chips in an automobile can't really doing much a search of the car doesn't do better. You have a legal obligation to identify yourself to police, does it matter if that's by means of a photo ID or a subcutaneous chip? I don't get the cause for concern.

Take Care -

ZC

[gettingold66]

I certainly don't care if anyone knows where I buy products. I don't have anything to hide. Certainly, banks and others know all of my personal business. Why be concerned about RFID's.

[Zombiewire]

Lawmaker doesn't want chip in your shoulder
00:00 am 4/09/05
Tom Sheehan Lee Newspapers

State Rep. Marlin Schneider doesn't want government getting under your skin.

The Wisconsin Rapids Democrat plans a measure to prohibit anyone, including the government and employers, from requiring microchip implants in people.

Sound far-fetched, like something from a sci-fi flick? Maybe. But Schneider, a privacy advocate, says technology once reserved for tracking pets or livestock is already moving to humans - in medical, security and identity verification applications.

So far, only willing participants have had rice grain-sized devices implanted just below their skin. But Schneider worries that government eventually will use the devices to track and monitor citizens. "People will find reasons why everyone should have these chips implanted."
http://www.madison.com/wsj/mad/local/index.php?ntid=35518

[Zen Curmudgeon]

Quoting from ZWire's last linked article -

"Nightclubs in Scotland and Spain offer customers a microchip implant that lets them charge without a credit card. And as the patron moves through a club, bar staff can ready the customer's favorite drink - before the patron even settles at the bar."


Take Care -

ZC

[Zombiewire]

Well I started a blog called VeriChip News. I will focas on rfid and contactless payments. You will find links to stories that will set you back on your seat. Here is one head line.



Microsoft Patents Body-As-Network
A human conduit could distribute power across wearable devices, developer says.
Microsoft patents a method to transmit data and power over the human body

http://verichipnews.blog-city.com/

[large]

James, you are now officially part of my "Favorites" . . . Good site!

[Zombiewire]

Thanks large. If you want I can help you with a blog.

Here is back to that story with RFID in your car. Read the spin. The spin is like a red light saying: I am the SPIN" The spin "There's no compelling reason any personal information should be stored on those RFID tags "

the link: http://www.computerworld.com/governmenttopics/government/story/0,10801,100957,00.html

[Zen Curmudgeon]

http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,67025,00.html?tw=wn_story_page_prev2

A fairly thorough review, I think. A quote from a source in this article caught my attention:

Terrorists could also track down and kidnap Americans oversees by secretly reading their chipped passports.

"Let's say you are in Beirut, carrying a passport with an RFID tag," said Steinhardt. "A terrorist with a portable reader device could easily tell who is the American (in a public space)."

I don't believe you'd need a "portable reader device" to identify an American out on the town in Beirut, Lebanon. :)

Take Care -

ZC

[Zombiewire]

@ 4:06 this morning I woke up to the house rocking and rolling. We had an earth quake.
It will be kind of nice to have something else to think about today.

" i feel the earth move" http://earthquake.usgs.gov/recenteqs/

[Zombiewire]

AIM Global has developed a draft policy statement on privacy issues relating to the implementation of RFID technology.

The association’s RFID Experts Group (REG) presented the document to a US Congressional Caucus looking into privacy concerns. The draft policy recognised individuals' rights and outlined ways in which RFID technology can be used while helping ensure individuals' privacy.
As an extension of the draft policy, the REG also submitted comments on a draft European Union (EU) document on privacy concerns.

The group hopes that the statement will go some way to calming fears that the proliferation of RFID throughout the supply chain could lead to serious invasions of privacy.

http://foodproductiondaily.com/news/news-ng.asp?n=59357-aim-releases-statement

[Zombiewire]

IBM Signs $125 Million Deal To Build Nationwide Speed Trap April 15, 2005

In what is described as the largest telematics deal in history, IBM engineers will design an automobile-monitoring system and install a device in cars to track drivers in the United Arab Emirates.

IBM said it has signed a four-year, $125 million deal to build an automobile-monitoring system and install a device in cars to track drivers in the United Arab Emirates, making it the largest telematics deal in history.
The UAE's CERT Telematics, a unit of the Centre of Excellence for Applied Research and Training in Dubai, signed the deal to help improve road safety throughout the country, according to IBM spokesman Cary Ziter. "The project started with a social problem. They have a population of 3 million and 2 million have drivers' licenses. Their population has boomed and their roads have become clogged," Ziter says.

http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=160901571

[Zombiewire]

Consumers Aware of RFID (Radio Frequency Identification Tags) Climbs to 40%

Latest RFID Consumer Buzz Study by BIGresearch and Artafact Shows Awareness Climbing
Among Consumers From Just 28.2% Last Year to 40% in March 2005
COLUMBUS, OH -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 4/6/2005 -- If you haven't heard of RFID technology yet, you soon will from your friends, the Internet and mass media according to the most recent poll of 8,500 adults from BIGresearch and Artafact LLC.

Sept-04: 28.2%, Dec-04: 35.7%, Mar-05: 40.8%

As the "buzz" continues to grow around new RFID applications being used to tag everything from products to people, so do consumer concerns. 67% of those aware remain concerned that the information collected about their purchasing habits will be shared without their express permission and they know what they are talking about. When RFID aware adults were asked to rate their understanding of how retailers intend to use RFID technology, 68% say they somewhat or fully understand how retailers intend to use RFID tags.

TV and Radio News remain the most common way people learn about RFID (25.6% in March 2005) followed closely by the Internet (23.0%). There is a gender gap in awareness with more men (52%) aware of the technology than women (31%). Attitudes about RFID vary by gender also with women being significantly less positive about it than men.

[Zombiewire]

Tutu calls for child registration

Governments are urged to ensure all children are registered
South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu has helped launch a global campaign calling for governments to ensure all children are registered at birth.
He said it was a matter of life and death - an unregistered child did not officially exist and was vulnerable to traffickers and during disasters.

In South Asia alone, there are no records for six out of every 10 babies, campaign organisers Plan say.

The agency fears around half a billion children worldwide may be unregistered.

Archbishop Tutu said a birth document was important because it "proves who you are". Without it children are often barred from education, health care and citizenship.

"It is, in a very real sense, a matter of life and death," the Nobel Peace Prize laureate told a news conference at the UN headquarters in New York.

"The unregistered child is a nonentity. The unregistered child does not exist. How can we live with the knowledge that we could have made a difference?"

Cambodia success

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child imposes an obligation on countries to register every child immediately after birth.

But Plan, the international agency organising the registration campaign, said that was not happening in many parts of the world.


An unregistered child does not officially exist: Desmond Tutu

In a report released to coincide with the campaign, Plan said no records existed for 60% of babies born annually in South Asia, and that 55% of births in sub-Saharan Africa go unrecorded.

"Governments worldwide are failing the world's children, as millions of youngsters without a birth certificate find it very difficult to prove their age or nationality," said Thomas Miller, Plan's chief executive.

"And parents whose children go missing during disasters like the tsunami or because they are abducted by traffickers may even be unable to get help with tracing their sons or daughters because they cannot prove the age of their children - or in many cases that their children even exist."

He said a recent campaign in Cambodia - in which they registered 2.4 million people in less than four months - showed it could be done without incurring high costs.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4289393.stm

[Zen Curmudgeon]

Tutu calls for child registration

Governments are urged to ensure all children are registered
South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu has helped launch a global campaign calling for governments to ensure all children are registered at birth.
He said it was a matter of life and death - an unregistered child did not officially exist and was vulnerable to traffickers and during disasters. >>snip<<
I'm missing the problem here, I guess. How can birth registration be a bad thing?

There are upsides, as the BBC article you referenced says: most importantly, access to health care. According to President Bush's 2003 State of the Union speech there are at least 3 million HIV positive children in sub-Saharan Africa.

If Bishop Tutu is correct and lack of registration prevents access to health care, that number could be far higher. Failure to register a birth can mean certain death from AIDS for millions of children.

Again, how is birth registration a bad thing? The trade off seems worthwhile.

I'm confused.

Take Care -

ZC

[Zombiewire]

I'm missing the problem here, I guess. How can birth registration be a bad thing?

There are upsides, as the BBC article you referenced says: most importantly, access to health care. According to President Bush's 2003 State of the Union speech there are at least 3 million HIV positive children in sub-Saharan Africa.

If Bishop Tutu is correct and lack of registration prevents access to health care, that number could be far higher. Failure to register a birth can mean certain death from AIDS for millions of children.

Again, how is birth registration a bad thing? The trade off seems worthwhile.

I'm confused.

Take Care -

ZC




I did not state an opinion on this topic. I did not say that it is a bad thing.

However, Do you think a child needs to be registered to exist? Does a human need the government's registry today for existence? I would think Tutu would use less profound words to articulate his point having the title of a Bishop.

[Zen Curmudgeon]

I did not state an opinion on this topic. I did not say that it is a bad thing.
However, Do you think a child needs to be registered to exist? Does a human need the government's registry today for existence? I would think Tutu would use less profound words to articulate his point having the title of a Bishop.Sorry for the misunderstanding - your use of the thumbs down icon in the post's title mislead me.

Of course, self-awareness needs no external validation. But receiving services of any kind requires the provider know you exist, and a birth registration is one way to do that. (My own self-validation is reinforced every time I run a debit card for a six of Fat Tire ;).)

It seems to me that Bishop Tutu's language was appropriate - lacking a document can lead to an early death or enslavement for an unregistered child.

Take Care -

ZC

[Zombiewire]

Identity theft, credit card fraud and invasion of personal privacy are growing problems that affect millions of people every year. One company claims it has the solution: a chip implanted under your skin to verify your identity.

Last October the Food and Drug Adminstration judged that Verichip is not considered a regulated medical device, so approval for the chip to be implanted in humans is not regulated by the government. That means it’s up to you. Are you ready to be chipped?

Not everyone News 8 with sounds thrilled about the futuristic idea.

“Absolutely not,” said Ava Sale.

“A total invasion of privacy,” said Wade Shanower.
http://www.wishtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=3289854

[Zen Curmudgeon]

Howdy -

Check this out:

http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0504/p02s02-usju.html

Signed into law by an outraged Gov. Jeb Bush on Monday, the Jessica Lunsford Act - known as "Jessica's law" - provides for satellite tracking of sex offenders in the state for the first time.

It's a move officials believe will significantly reduce or even eliminate the number of "missing" child molesters in the state. The law also sets a minimum 25-year sentence for anyone convicted of preying on a child under 12.

The question is, do we consider intrusive monitoring "punishment", and if we do, then is it appropriate to continue to "punish" a convicted criminal who has completed his lawfully-imposed sentence?

Take Care -

ZC

[mohawkdigital]

Is it true that this tagzapper has finally been developed?

[Zombiewire]

Is it true that this tagzapper has finally been developed?


The TagZapper™ is being developed to be a light weight, handheld, device for deactivating RFID transmitting devices.
This is intended to fulfill consumer demand for a means to protect their privacy.





Proposed scenario:
A consumer purchases a six-pack of beer at a convenience store.
After exiting the store the consumer uses her TagZapper™ to disable the RFID tags.
At this point the consumer is able to transport and consume her purchase without being monitored by any commercial or government agency.




Detailed information about the TagZapper product to be released at a future date.

www.tagzapper.com

[large]

Awww, C'mon James, there's no part of that 6 pack (or 12 pack for that matter) that's going anyplace ANYONE cares about . . cept inna dumpster on it's way to th' landfill!

That is of course if the consumer isn't in a fast moving car on the I . . then let 'em track it . . . !

[Zombiewire]

While there's two sides to this particular technology . . Those against it who fear the writings of George Orwell are coming to pass . . Be careful of what you wish for . .

You're gonna create another "thereoughtabealaw!" which will cause our elected 535 Idiots to react . . .

But, from what I've read since being made aware of the technology by your comments on this site, I think they're here . . . The Government, especially the DOD, has made a very large investment in the technology and if they have it already . . . try making laws against it! It's already in use on all of our toll roads, the DOT uses it for a myriad of things, the State DOTs use it . . The Dept of Agriculture is starting to advocate it's use in the livestock area, . . . I think it's a Dead Horse . . . No use flogging it anymore.

No pun intended!




There are already RFID chips in products at your Wal Mart and some other stores. Eventually there will be RFID chips in all product at every store. Say you buy a shirt from Wal Mart with your ATM or Visa card or you Verichip implant. The next day you walk into another store with that shirt on. The store RFID reader will get information all about you.
Now that WiFI and RFID are in bed together, you can be read just walking in a WiFi hot zone. WiFi zone are all over the place. At that point you are information traveling via the World Wide Web. You can be tracked. It is an easy formula. Now with the national ID mandate which will have the RFID chip embedded. You will surely be tracked be WiFi.

Since the mad cow out break RFID chips are required in cattle now to tract them back to birth. It is not a dead horse. I know all about that too. I am the RFID GURU

[Zombiewire]

Awww, C'mon James, there's no part of that 6 pack (or 12 pack for that matter) that's going anyplace ANYONE cares about . . cept inna dumpster on it's way to th' landfill!

That is of course if the consumer isn't in a fast moving car on the I . . then let 'em track it . . . !

Have you seen the Coke commercial of how this can has a tracking chip in it and when you push the button on the can, you may be a winner. They say" you don not have to find us we will find you." Then they show a helicopter in this guys back yard shortly after.
Large. Everything I post you have a negative reply. You reply with little facts to back it up. I do not go to your post and tell you that you are wrong on your ideas. We all come here to share information. so please if you do not have facts to back up your statements then it is better to say nothing at all. You know what they say about the word ASSUME?


here is the Coke can link http://www.networkworld.com/weblogs/layer8/005828.html

[large]

Hey, pal, the bogeyman ain't the chip, it's the a**holes that gain the information and what they do with it.

Would you like me to go to an available Data Company, pay them $40 for the personal information they have attached to YOUR name and SS#, then publish it on this site? It will include: Your full name, your current and all past addresses, your personal and real property, your criminal and driving records, your credit rating as well as a list of your current debts, and of course your occupation, and if self employed, as you are, the current credit condition of your company. I bet you don't!

How's that for FACTS, AND A FIRM ANSWER to your cheap shot?

I keep saying, and someday all you people will understand, BIG BROTHER already exists, they already know more about you than you do, and the information isn't secret, but is available to any swinging D**K who wants to pay for it!

And again, I have to say, I have some doubt in your sincerity, because you have admitted to owning stock in the technology. How are we to know that you haven't invested heavily in the "Tagzapper" and are using many available forums as a way of furthering interest and purchase of your investment. I know for a fact that you are currently posting on Five Forums . .

As a fellow poster on another forum sez; "Follow the money!"

See where I'm coming from?

[Zombiewire]

I think i am at at least 50 forums. Yes I would invest in the Tagzapper for it is the only tool that kills the RFID chip. I have sold all my RFID stock. I am sorry if I had a cheap shot. I am just passionate at what I am doing. I respect yours takes on RFID. what you say about information can be gained very easy, however I can not cover every subject. There should always be a balance and you bring that to the table. James



Hey, pal, the bogeyman ain't the chip, it's the a**holes that gain the information and what they do with it.

Would you like me to go to an available Data Company, pay them $40 for the personal information they have attached to YOUR name and SS#, then publish it on this site? It will include: Your full name, your current and all past addresses, your personal and real property, your criminal and driving records, your credit rating as well as a list of your current debts, and of course your occupation, and if self employed, as you are, the current credit condition of your company. I bet you don't!

How's that for FACTS, AND A FIRM ANSWER to your cheap shot?

I keep saying, and someday all you people will understand, BIG BROTHER already exists, they already know more about you than you do, and the information isn't secret, but is available to any swinging D**K who wants to pay for it!

And again, I have to say, I have some doubt in your sincerity, because you have admitted to owning stock in the technology. How are we to know that you haven't invested heavily in the "Tagzapper" and are using many available forums as a way of furthering interest and purchase of your investment. I know for a fact that you are currently posting on Five Forums . .

As a fellow poster on another forum sez; "Follow the money!"

See where I'm coming from?

[large]

Nahhh, I don't doubt that RFIDs aren't going to end up in court, and some uses outlawed and others restricted . . .

However, as I continue to say . . We gots problems right here in River City! The Big Brother is already here . . RFIDs are just a tool, quite like the computer (from which it sprung, or is that spranged?) and what we do with them is going to have to be constrained either by law directly or indirectly by legislating the sale of Data. I would prefer the latter.

As I said, you don't want everybody knowing EVERYTHING about you . . Me neither! So we need to mount some sort of defense against the proliferation of data gatherers and the sale of same!

As we spoke on another forum, the National ID thing is gonna get outa control because all th' watchdogs haaven't raised so much as a finger . . Seems to me, a RFID in your Driver's License would be tantamount to "Unreasonable search" laws . . . See where I'm at? And if we give the government those powers they're the same ones who give the Data Companies a lot of the information they have about you and me . . . .

[Zen Curmudgeon]

The slightly paranoid approach Zombiewire takes to RFIDs came to mind as I read a short story called "And the Dish Ran Away with the Spoon" by Paul Di Fillipo.

In this story, RFID-implanted, WiFi-enabled products become commonplace and very very convenient. All is well until one day...

"The Volition Bug was launched anonymously from a site somewhere in a Central Asian republic. It propagated wirelessly among all the WiFi-communicating chipped objects, installing new directives in their tiny brains, directives that ran covertly in parallel with their normal facory-specified functions. Infected objects now sought to link their processing power with their nearest peers, often achieving surprising levels of Turingosity., and then to embark on a kind of independent communal life. Of course, once the Volition Bug was identified, antiviral defenses - both hardware and software - were attempted against it. But VB mutated ferociously, aided and abetted by subsequent hackers. "

It's an entertaining story, despite the death of the narrator's parents by a conglomeratation of RFID-equipped home appliances (an electric carving knife) and the near loss of his lover (due to the erotic attentions of an RFID'd Hoover vacuum cleaner). But if you want to travel down the paranoid road, it's a good read. As contemporary science fiction, it's still entertaining. I found it in "The World's Best Science Fiction" 21st edition, edited by Gardner Dozois.

Take Care -

ZC

[Zombiewire]

My child read this book to me and it reminded me of zen

LITTLE JACK HORNER
Little Jack Horner
Sat in the corner,
Eating of Christmas pie:
He put in his thumb,
And pulled out a plum,
And said, “What a good boy am I!”





The slightly paranoid approach Zombiewire takes to RFIDs came to mind as I read a short story called "And the Dish Ran Away with the Spoon" by Paul Di Fillipo.

In this story, RFID-implanted, WiFi-enabled products become commonplace and very very convenient. All is well until one day...

"The Volition Bug was launched anonymously from a site somewhere in a Central Asian republic. It propagated wirelessly among all the WiFi-communicating chipped objects, installing new directives in their tiny brains, directives that ran covertly in parallel with their normal facory-specified functions. Infected objects now sought to link their processing power with their nearest peers, often achieving surprising levels of Turingosity., and then to embark on a kind of independent communal life. Of course, once the Volition Bug was identified, antiviral defenses - both hardware and software - were attempted against it. But VB mutated ferociously, aided and abetted by subsequent hackers. "

It's an entertaining story, despite the death of the narrator's parents by a conglomeratation of RFID-equipped home appliances (an electric carving knife) and the near loss of his lover (due to the erotic attentions of an RFID'd Hoover vacuum cleaner). But if you want to travel down the paranoid road, it's a good read. As contemporary science fiction, it's still entertaining. I found it in "The World's Best Science Fiction" 21st edition, edited by Gardner Dozois.

Take Care -

ZC

[Zen Curmudgeon]

There was a small Arfid
Attached to a shoe.
It broadcast its data
To - you know who.

It hooked up to WiFi
Without any art.
And now all your secrets
Are known to WalMart.

:)

Take Care

ZC

[Zombiewire]

Some cafes and retail stores in Seattle next week will begin individually marketing products and services to bypassers in Seattle using RFID (radio frequency identification) technology.

The first target group is visually and hearing-impaired individuals who can benefit from positioning and navigation applications added to the system.

Six wireless public areas, called activation fields, will go live next week throughout downtown Seattle and at the city's ferry terminal. Over a few months 15 more city areas will be added. Users carrying an active tag and entering the activation field are recognized as the tag is read, and then are presented with announcements.

"Speakers are mounted on the telephone booth or the facade of the store. So they will be above the individual's head when they pass underneath or nearby," said Harry H Hart. III, founder and chief executive officer of Seattle's Awarea, which owns and manages the system.

Users of the personalized marketing system carry an active RFID tag roughly the size of a stack of four credit cards. When the tag comes within 100 feet of a transmitter sending low frequency signals at 126 kilohertz, the tag transmits a unique identification signal to a receiver connected to a monitoring and execution server.

Depending on what information the system has filed on the individual carrying the tag, the server selects the correct file to output -- either an audio file in Wave-format for an announcement or a Quicktime file for sign language to be displayed on a video monitor. The first message could be the address and sale information from a nearby retailer.

Customers needing more information can push a tell-me-more-button, explained Ben Donohue, vice president of business development for Axcess, which is providing the hardware and designing the system.

Data about the customer can be mined and sold to the retailers, Donohue said. It can also be used to personalize marketing and map customer behavior.

One hundred thirty active RFID tags have been in use at a test site with only one transmitter at Pioneer Square in Seattle for a year. Beginning June 1, when more transmitters are activated in downtown Seattle constituting six tag activation zones, more tags will be sold and rented.

Awarea plans to market the system at the National Federation of the Blind of Washington's legislative luncheon this weekend.

Assistive technology could include safety and navigation information displayed on a personal digital assistant or a smart phone. The information could also be delivered in audio format the same way as it is today to speakers mounted in information zones or to a Braille reader.

Other possible applications might be for tourists who might want guidance in the downtown Seattle area.

http://www.computerworld.com.au/index.php/id%3b608893675%3bfp%3b16%3bfpid%3b0


Is Pueblo next?

[Zombiewire]

Colorado has been selected as one of two markets for the rollout of Chase Bank's new "Blink" credit card that uses wireless technology to speed transactions.

The new cards will have a radio-frequency identification tag embedded in them so that shoppers can just wave the card past a reader instead of swiping it. Georgia is the other initial market.

RFID tags have become popular aids for inventory control and the little square maze-like chips can be found attached to many consumer items. Some oil companies started using them a couple of years ago for gasoline sales and MasterCard and American Express also have done some test marketing of the devices.

Scott Rau, senior vice president of payments for Chase card services, said that the new cards will be distributed to 500,000 Chase credit card customers in Colorado over the coming weeks. Holders of Chase cards and cards issued through Bank One, which does not have a presence in Pueblo, will be the first to get them. Other partners with Chase like Amazon.com, United Airlines and others will decide on their own timetables.

So far, Arby's, 7-Eleven and Walgreen's have agreed to install readers. Officials from those merchants did not know how soon readers would be installed in their Pueblo outlets. The readers will cost merchants between $100 and $150 each, Rau said.

The new cards only have to be held near a point-of-sale terminal equipped for RFID technology and the terminal will emit a tone and light up to signal payment confirmation.

Chase officials say that the system improves customer security because it does not leave a printed record of their credit card number in the store.

Some computer experts have expressed fears, however, that hackers will find ways to read the RFID tags as they pass by a credit-card holder.

To protect the data, the information is encrypted.

One of the other benefits of the system is speed, especially in fast-food restaurants.
http://www.chieftain.com/business/1118318235/4

[large]

OK, as I've said, RFID technology can and probably be a boon to the retailers, the banks, and other businesses who strive to have a "Paperless Society". Also I've said that there should be some checks and balances to guard against misuse . . .

That being said . . . At this time the technology is proliferating, quantum leaps are being made and tested in it's use . . .

But your Congressman isn't listening . . . apparently he doesn't care . . .

While there have been two hearings in the House of Represenatives last year and the year before, nothing has ever come of either . . they were "Fact Finding Hearings" and that's all . . . .

My bet is . . just like the privacy oversight that our banks and credit reporting agencies seem to dodge, RFID will be put to use with no oversight or restraints . . . and YOUR personal information will still be out there for anyone that wants it! And it doesn't matter whether they read that information from an 8.5 X 11 piece of paper or on a LCD screen . . it's out there!

[Zen Curmudgeon]

I can't use the common word "wiseass" without automatic editing but ZW's little animated man can touch himself more frequently than Michael Jackson at a Cub Scout rally without any equivalent censorship.

Dude, WTF?

Take Care -

ZC

PS

Ahaa! Using quotation marks defeats the apparently spell-check-dependant "naughty word" detector. Good to know.

ZC

[Zombiewire]

I agree! However you are over looking the tracking of the rfid chip. That is the issue.


OK, as I've said, RFID technology can and probably be a boon to the retailers, the banks, and other businesses who strive to have a "Paperless Society". Also I've said that there should be some checks and balances to guard against misuse . . .

That being said . . . At this time the technology is proliferating, quantum leaps are being made and tested in it's use . . .

But your Congressman isn't listening . . . apparently he doesn't care . . .

While there have been two hearings in the House of Represenatives last year and the year before, nothing has ever come of either . . they were "Fact Finding Hearings" and that's all . . . .

My bet is . . just like the privacy oversight that our banks and credit reporting agencies seem to dodge, RFID will be put to use with no oversight or restraints . . . and YOUR personal information will still be out there for anyone that wants it! And it doesn't matter whether they read that information from an 8.5 X 11 piece of paper or on a LCD screen . . it's out there!

[Zen Curmudgeon]

RFID Foes Find Righteous Ally
By Mark Baard

Story location: http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,68133,00.html

02:00 AM Jul. 14, 2005 PT

Privacy advocate Katherine Albrecht, an opponent of the use of radio tags on consumer goods and in ID documents, is a woman any X-Files fan could love.

She's youthful-looking and attractive, with fair skin and cherry-blonde hair. A former schoolteacher, Albrecht also has a master's degree from Harvard, where she is completing a doctoral degree.

Albrecht is suspicious of the government and big business. She's been an electrifying guest on Coast to Coast AM, the cult radio show featuring talk about aliens, ghosts, conspiracies and cryptozoology.

As director of the consumer privacy group Caspian, Albrecht is a darling of the mainstream news media too. In hundreds of interviews, in a list of publications that includes Business Week and Times of London, she has warned of privacy risks posed by RFID tags, the radio devices that retailers plan to use as a replacement for bar-code labels.

Albrecht fears that retailers will match the data emitted by the tags with their customers' information, turning each tag into a potential tracking beacon. She also suspects the government will want access to the retailers' RFID databases.

But one aspect of Albrecht's anti-RFID crusade has been attracting a lot of attention from other privacy groups: her religious beliefs.

Albrecht does not often discuss her religious views with reporters. But she believes that RFID technology may be part of the fulfillment of the Mark of the Beast prophesied in the Book of Revelation.

Other privacy rights advocates want Albrecht to help them connect with Christians who believe that RFID tags -- tiny chips that emit serial numbers -- are the Mark of the Beast. Many of those Christians believe humans one day will be compelled to bear a mark on their heads or wrists, to engage in the buying and selling of goods.

"Sometimes, it's as if they are saying, 'Hooray, we've got one (a Christian) in our midst,'" said Albrecht. "'Maybe she can tell us what to do.'"

Bill Scannell, a privacy advocate, and Lee Tien, senior staff attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, are among those who have talked to Albrecht about reaching out to Christians who take parts of the Bible literally.

"Many of us in the mainstream privacy community," said Tien, "don't know how to reach out to (the Christian community)."

Albrecht is already reaching at least a few of her fellow Christians, through videos produced by Endtime Ministries, that link RFID to the Book of Revelation.

"The Mark of the Beast, 666: a prophesy from 2000 years ago," says Albrecht, at the beginning of her video, On the Brink of the Mark, produced two years ago. "How many people (know that) technological developments of the last 10 to 20 years could be combining to make the Mark of the Beast a reality, and possibly even in our lifetimes?"

Endtime, based in Richmond, Indiana, claims to have sold thousands of copies of On the Brink of the Mark and other videos featuring Albrecht.

Albrecht has been a guest on Endtime's radio program, Politics and Religion, as well as other religious programs. She also has a book deal with Thomas Nelson, the Christian book publisher.

With a Bible-thumper in the White House, and the popular success of the Left Behind series of Christian-themed novels, American culture may be ready to hear Albrecht's message that RFID tags, such as the rather bizarre VeriChip implant, may become the must-have gadget for any servant of Satan.

"The impact Katherine could have on America's Christians is significant," said Politics and Religion co-host Edward Sax. "If she wanted to start a political movement, she could."

Scannell and Tien do not share Albrecht's biblical interpretations.

But there is nothing wrong with people who oppose RFID for theological reasons, said Scannell.

"I have a lot of time for Katherine Albrecht and for the Endtime people, when it comes to this particular issue," said Scannell, who has himself appeared on the Politics and Religion radio program. "I can work with anyone willing to fight this stuff."

The RFID industry must pay attention to the concerns of those who believe RFID may become the Mark of the Beast, said Peter de Jager, an expert on the adoption of new technologies.

"You have to take the social context into account when implementing a technology," said de Jager.

But some companies "are laughing in the face of the opposition, almost daring people to resist them," said de Jager. "And you don't do that to consumers."

But retailers may not have much to fear, as long as Christians don't have to pay more for their goods, said Tim Miller, professor of religious studies at the University of Kansas and chairman of the editorial board of the Religious Movements Homepage at the University of Virginia.

"There may be lots and lots of preaching," said Miller, speaking of potential religious opposition to RFID tags. "But as long as the bargains are there, any boycott will not likely have much adverse effect."

[large]

With all due respect to those concerned about the RFID Technology and it's potential invasion on Personal Privacy . . . IT WILL INVADE YOUR PERSONAL PRIVACY! . . . but, in this age of "Information" everything we do socially and economically invades our personal privacy . . when we write a check, when we use a credit of debit card, when we use the postal service, when we apply for a rebate on an item we have bought, when we purchase major purchases, and even when we pay our taxes, both income and property . . the more you interact with the business community, the more information you provide someone about yourself, your likes and dislikes, your spending habits, your travel habits, etc . . I think we're conveying the idea here . . . . do you get it yet?

It doesn't matter how that information is gleaned, nor apparently, what information is gleaned . . . But the Anti-RFID crowd, either based on religion (that's kinda goofy really) or Anti-technocrats have latched onto this particular Technology more or less after the fact . . . and are screaming about the sky . . It's falling once again!

Already fell, sports fans . . the information people already know more about the average American that we even have a clue about . . What in the world can RFIDs tell anybody that isn't already known? You just have to ask the right people!

This has got to be one of those "GET A LIFE!" issues . . . .

[Zombiewire]

Mark Of The Beast
July 14th, 2005

Privacy advocate Katherine Albrecht, an opponent of the use of radio tags on consumer goods and in ID documents, is a woman any X-Files fan could love. She's youthful-looking and attractive, with fair skin and cherry-blonde hair. A former schoolteacher, Albrecht also has a master's degree from Harvard, where she is completing a doctoral degree. See photoAlbrecht is suspicious of the government and big business. She's been an electrifying guest on Coast to Coast AM, the cult radio show featuring talk about aliens, ghosts, conspiracies and cryptozoology. As director of the consumer privacy group Caspian,
>>>>> Read the rest http://www.rfidetail.com

regards, James

[Zen Curmudgeon]

http://www.physorg.com/news5289.html

First RFID system with UHF technology successfully in operation

Cinram, leader vendor of pre-recorded CDs and DVDs, and Siemens Automation and Drives (A&D) have jointly implemented an RFID (radio frequency identification) solution in the UHF (ultra high frequency) range. To optimize supply logistics, two loading doors at the incoming goods area of Cinram's central materials warehouse in Alsfeld near Cologne, Germany have been equipped with the new Simatic RF 600 RFID system from Siemens.

Selected Cinram suppliers equip their supply units with data carriers known as RFID tags. The supplied goods are recorded and analyzed automatically. The RFID gate reader, enclosed in a rugged housing, has been field-proven to withstand the harsh environmental conditions prevailing at the loading gate: Almost a hundred percent of the data carriers were correctly recorded. After successful completion of the pilot phase, the system is now in normal operation. Cinram intends gradually convincing its top suppliers to introduce RFID technology. Since the data carrier is still attached to the packaging after the goods have been placed in storage, the intention is to use RFID to optimize further steps in the logistics chain beyond inbound logistics.

In the current RFID solution, the data stored on the tag at delivery are compared with an electronic delivery notice transmitted in advance. If the delivery agrees with the advice, the system automatically enters the incoming goods into the SAP system. Previously, the incoming goods were recorded manually and then entered in SAP – a time-consuming process. The quality of the logistics chain has also been significantly improved using RFID because a mistaken delivery can be reliably detected before the goods are stored in the warehouse. Previously, there was no comparison of the delivered goods with the delivery advice, so a mistaken delivery was only detected further down the process. The SAP connection is based on a software module from Siemens and has been implemented jointly with Cinram.

[Zen Curmudgeon]

http://news.com.com/Former+Bush+official+to+get+RFID+tag/2100-1029_3-5793685.html?part=rss&tag=5793685&subj=news

Former Bush official to get RFID tag
Published: July 18, 2005, 4:43 PM PDT
By Michael Kanellos
Staff Writer, CNET News.com

Tommy Thompson, the Health and Human Services Secretary in President Bush's first term and a former Governor of Wisconsin, is going to get tagged.

Thompson has joined the board of Applied Digital, which owns VeriChip, the company that specializes in subcutaneous RFID tags for humans and pets.

To help promote the concepts behind the technology, Thompson himself will get an RFID tag implanted under his skin.

Human RFID tags have emerged as one of the more controversial technologies in years. Civil libertarians theorize that