Wal-Mart to Begin Electronically Tracking Your Panties
Starting next month, Wal-Mart will put radio-frequency ID tags on all its garments. By waving a wand, they can identify the location of every product, down to size and color. When you bring it home, the tag goes with you. The removable tags are similar to the ones traditionally used to track large-scale shipments. Wal-Mart's decision to implement the technology will be the first adoption of RFIDs for a major retailer. And naturally there are privacy concerns:
While the tags can be removed from clothing and packages, they can't be turned off, and they are trackable. Some privacy advocates hypothesize that unscrupulous marketers or criminals will be able to drive by consumers' homes and scan their garbage to discover what they have recently bought.
They also worry that retailers will be able to scan customers who carry new types of personal ID cards as they walk through a store, without their knowledge. Several states, including Washington and New York, have begun issuing enhanced driver's licenses that contain radio- frequency tags with unique ID numbers, to make border crossings easier for frequent travelers.
According to a privacy expert the Wall Street Journal interviewed, civilization is utilizing RFID technology in exactly the dumbest way possible:
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Starting next month, Wal-Mart will put radio-frequency ID tags on all its garments. By waving a wand, they can identify the location of every product, down to size and color. When you bring it home, the tag goes with you. The removable tags are similar to the ones traditionally used to track large-scale shipments. Wal-Mart's decision to implement the technology will be the first adoption of RFIDs for a major retailer. And naturally there are privacy concerns:
While the tags can be removed from clothing and packages, they can't be turned off, and they are trackable. Some privacy advocates hypothesize that unscrupulous marketers or criminals will be able to drive by consumers' homes and scan their garbage to discover what they have recently bought.
They also worry that retailers will be able to scan customers who carry new types of personal ID cards as they walk through a store, without their knowledge. Several states, including Washington and New York, have begun issuing enhanced driver's licenses that contain radio- frequency tags with unique ID numbers, to make border crossings easier for frequent travelers.
According to a privacy expert the Wall Street Journal interviewed, civilization is utilizing RFID technology in exactly the dumbest way possible:
Read More
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