Philips adds 'off switch' to RFID tags

Daily Newsletters

Sign up to ZDNet UK's daily newsletter.

NEWS
In response to privacy concerns over the use of radio frequency identity (RFID) technology, Philips will include a "kill command" in its chips Christoph Duverne, vice president of marketing and sales at Philips Semiconductors' Identification group said in engineering journal EETimes that the company will offer an option that allows its radio tags to be disabled when its use is no longer required. Duverne said Philips is sensitive to privacy concerns stemming from the use of RFID technology, although he feels such worries are often misguided. "This is not GPS (Global Positioning System) technology. The RFID tags alone can only store product information, not personal information," he was quoted as saying. The use of radio tags, considered by many to be the future for inventory tracking, has sparked some consumer fury, while those in favour laud its superiority over bar codes. With RFID chips, firms can have precise information about stock levels and inventory movement with the wave of a reader wand. However, consumers fear the tags can also be used to monitor their whereabouts. In addition, RFID makes it technically possible for marketers to obtain invaluable information on a host of consumer preferences, ranging from the clothes they like to the food they prefer. Earlier this year, US-based privacy group Consumers Against Supermarket Privacy Invasion and Numbering lashed out at Benetton and called for a worldwide boycott soon after plans to use RFID tags were announced by the clothing maker. Benetton has since clarified that the firm is merely evaluating radio tags, and has not firmed up plans for commercial deployment. In a related announcement, Philips said a German supermarket chain has adopted its radio frequency tracking technology. Metro Group opened a supermarket last Monday in Rheinberg, a city in Western Germany, to showcase emerging retail technologies. The shop uses Philips' RFID-enabled i.code chips. In a report by the Associated Press, Metro said it will disable the tags after checkout. However, the tags are now being used mostly to replace bar codes on boxes and pallets -- at $1 a tag, they cost too much to be used on lower-priced items. Metro said it will wait till the price per tag comes down to about three US cents before considering using them on all items, said the report. When that happens, customers will be able to scan in the items into a reader-equipped shopping cart, then pay the displayed total at the checkout.
For a round-up of the latest tech business coverage, see the Business News Section. Let the editors know what you think in the Mailroom.

Talkback

It has been two years so what happen to Philip's' RFID kill command? Ill tell you. It is like everything else these manufactures or saying. All it was and is a smoke cloud from their smoking gun. The only news of a kill command I have hear from is that tagzapper tool.

via Facebook 13 April, 2005 15:43
Reply

Post your comment

In order to post a comment you need to be registered and logged in.

You can also log in with Facebook. Log in or create your ZDNet UK account below

  • Login

Will not be displayed with your comment

By signing up for this service, you indicate that you agree to our Terms and Conditions and have read and understood our Privacy Policy. Questions about membership? Find the answers in the Community FAQ

Get ZDNet UK's daily newsletter

Enter your email address to sign up

ZDNet UK Live

BrownieBoy

@Jack, > Works really well for thieves.... Nice attempt to deflect the argument by tossing in a point that's totally irrelevant, even it were...

6 hours ago by BrownieBoy on AMD Ultrathins to challenge Intel Ultrabooks
bootlegger

Make that 13 people now - I got refused today at Manchester airport. I thought I was up to date on this legislation - I knew of the EU ruling from...

9 hours ago by bootlegger on UK airport body scans will not be opt out
tinycg

Don't forget to check out apps like GoodReader or SlideShark either, they're indispensible for people on the go in presentation situations. Best...

12 hours ago by tinycg on Four top iPad apps for people on the move
TerryRK

Well it seems there is something a number of us agree on. Why is the Ubuntu Unity launcher so ugly? I thought perhaps it was something to do with...

16 hours ago by TerryRK on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Freebies202

Duplicate comments are not made intentionally. Its very good to know that now you are keeping check on this problem because sometimes a commenter...

1 day ago by Freebies202 on Microsoft fixes blog comments, speeds up blogs with open source
kevinmchapman

"the very significant number of users" and "many (most) of us" - you have no evidence for these statements. It is a fact that most users are saying...

1 day ago by kevinmchapman on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Marg Menzies Harrison

Another grammar faux pas is the improper use of "you". When sitting down down in a restaurant, for example, I get cringe when the waitress...

1 day ago by Marg Menzies Harrison via Facebook on 10 flagrant grammar mistakes that make you look stupid
zdnetukuser

And NOW, folks, for Canonical's next trick... Kubuntu is late. Here's a pencil. Draw your own conclusions. cf.:...

1 day ago by zdnetukuser on Linux Minterface
Moley

@kevinmchapman. The discussion here reflects the very significant number of users who really do like the traditional menu system and who wish to...

2 days ago by Moley on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
kevinmchapman

Er, no... It is an efficient means of finding the application/file/setting you need in one place. The icons are a simply a fallback for when you...

2 days ago by kevinmchapman on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
TerryRK

Isn't the provision of a text based search an admission by the developers that the mass of icons approach does not work? I don't need to use a...

2 days ago by TerryRK on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
kevinmchapman

"Unity and GNOME 3 both abandon the old text-based cascading menus in favour of a graphical icon-driven system." Point truly missed. Both use a...

2 days ago by kevinmchapman on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
TerryRK

whs001 - Thank you, I'm glad you liked the article. I absolutely agree with you on your first point. I should perhaps have made it clearer that...

2 days ago by TerryRK on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Dennis Nilsson

If we allow corporate interest to dictate the way our government circumvents due process against foreign entities then we should accept the same...

2 days ago by Dennis Nilsson via Facebook on ACTA stumbles in Germany
GHar123

I totally dislike pirating of works, I fear that artists will be deterred from creating works if they think that they are going to get ripped off....

2 days ago by GHar123 on ACTA stumbles in Germany
JCB33

How dare film makers, artists or anybody that invests in creativity stop us pirating their works for free. I want to be able to walk into my local...

2 days ago by JCB33 on ACTA stumbles in Germany
Moley

@GrueMaster. I prefer horses for courses rather than one size fits all. I, and I suspect most other computer users, do not really wish to have...

2 days ago by Moley on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
greycynic

The product that scares me every time I have to use it is the Office 2007 version of Excel. The first bug that I found was applying the median...

2 days ago by greycynic on Ten flawed products that derail productivity
GrueMaster

Nice review and very informative. One thing I'd like to add (in reply to whs001's 1st question), the main reason to have the same interface from...

2 days ago by GrueMaster on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Frederick Wrigley

I'be been using Mint 12 since the RC came out, and I am far more happy with the Cinnamon, the Mate, and, yes (with extensions), theGnome 3...

2 days ago by Frederick Wrigley via Facebook on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint