[Homestead] Conspiracy, Power, Privacy, and THEM

bob ford bobford79 at yahoo.com
Mon Sep 15 12:26:13 EDT 2008


Don, this is  the article to which I was referring.  They did say "broadcast", but I had the signals going the wrong way...bobf
 
How RFID Tags Could Be Used to Track Unsuspecting People 
A privacy activist argues that the devices pose new security risks to those who carry them, often unwittingly
By Katherine Albrecht 
  

Average consumers may not realize how many RFID tags they carry around. The devices are embedded in personal items and even some clothing. 

Melissa Thomas (photoillustration); Richard Schultz (RFID tags); Sam Jordash (woman); Burazin (key fob); ©2005 Transport For London (Oyster card); Identity Stronghold (passport sleeve); Dima Gavrysh AP Photo (Chase blink credit card); Rolf Vennenbernd DPA/Corbis (EAS/RFID); Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (SmarTrip card)
Key Concepts
	* Radio-frequency identi­fication (RFID) tags are embedded in a growing number of personal items and identity documents. 
	* Because the tags were designed to be powerful tracking devices and they typically incorporate little security, people wearing or carrying them are vulnerable to surreptitious surveillance and profiling. 
	* Worldwide, legislators have done little to address those risks to citizens. 
If you live in a state bordering Canada or Mexico, you may soon be given an opportunity to carry a very high tech item: a remotely readable driver’s license. Designed to identify U.S. citizens as they approach the nation’s borders, the cards are being promoted by the Department of Homeland Security as a way to save time and simplify border crossings. But if you care about your safety and privacy as much as convenience, you might want to think twice before signing up.
The new licenses come equipped with radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags that can be read right through a wallet, pocket or purse from as far away as 30 feet. Each tag incorporates a tiny microchip encoded with a unique identification number. As the bearer approaches a border station, radio energy broadcast by a reader device is picked up by an antenna connected to the chip, causing it to emit the ID number. By the time the license holder reaches the border agent, the number has already been fed into a Homeland Security database, and the traveler’s photograph and other details are displayed on the agent’s screen



----- Original Message ----
From: Don Bowen <don.bowen at earthlink.net>
To: akkabhomestead at yahoo.com; homestead at lists.ibiblio.org
Sent: Monday, September 15, 2008 7:53:34 AM
Subject: Re: [Homestead] Conspiracy, Power, Privacy, and THEM

>everything will have a passive, constantly
> broadcasting tag.

Something cannot be passive and constantly broadcasting at the same time.
Broadcasting is an active process.  RFID tags are not powered and are
passive and only respond when triggered by the RF signal of the scanner.
Currently range is limited and the scanners do not do well in discriminating
different devices when they are in close proximity to each other.

Don Bowen  KI6DIU
http://www.braingarage.com/Dons/Travels/journal/Journal.html

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