Brooke Singer, Self Portrait Version 2.0, 2001-2003.
Image: Courtesy of the artist.

Salon Discussion
Beatriz da Costa, Jamie Schulte and Brooke Singer
Saturday 22 Jan 2005
8 pm
$5/$3 members, students, seniors

More on RFID Technology
Over the past several years, da Costa, Schulte and Singer have been concerned with the social implications stemming from the collection and use of personal data collection in the United States. Government and commercial data practices have inherent privacy implications for individuals but also raise broader social issues like access control and profiling. The first project by the trio, SWIPE (www.we-swipe.us), specifically addresses digital encoding of personal data on drivers licenses and the misuse of this technology. Since SWIPE, the three have taken a closer look at the Automated Identification and Data Capture (AIDC) industry family, which includes electronic storage and reading technologies such as magnetic stripes, barcodes, biometrics and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID).

RFID Tags
RFIDs consist of a small microchip and antenna, enabling a tagged object to be automatically identified at a distance by a reader without human participation (as is needed to scan a barcode). Such a discreet tagging system for unique object identification is highly desired by businesses and government alike in order to efficiently track object movement, inventory levels and purchasing patterns. In April 2004 the US multi-national corporation, Wal-Mart, initiated in-store use of its RFID program and is aggressively pushing its suppliers to adopt the technology. This event is seen by many as heralding the beginning of mass implementation of RFID technology in global consumer markets. Retail stores, however, are not the only places RFID technology is popping up; tags are now found on airport luggage, library books, pharmaceuticals and military equipment. Discussion to integrate RFID tags into European currency, US postage stamps and cell phones is also currently ongoing.

RFID Dangers
Since RFIDs can be activated and read at a distance without contact, a person carrying a tag can be "zapped" for information, such as a unique product ID number, without notification and consent. The ability to hide tags inside clothing and readers in floor tiles can make it very difficult to find the technology even if one actively looks for it. This allows for potential tracking and information gathering that goes far beyond businesses' alleged objective to manage inventory. Without comprehensive data protection laws in the US, there is no system in place to protect such secondary uses of this data. Privacy advocates have encouraged retailers to incorporate automatic "kill switches" in all tags to render them useless after exiting a store. Wal-Mart and others have endorsed this plan as an option, but not a requirement. Furthermore, as industry pushes for low-cost and high-rollout, tags are for the most part not encrypted, permitting anyone with RFID compatible equipment to read tag information.

Project Description
Rather than creating a simple black and white picture regarding the social ramifications of RFID technologies (as often done by both promoters and critics of RFID), the Zapped! workshop offers solid technical understanding and create experiential situations aimed at demystifying RFID technologies. The workshop begins with a clear technical overview and discussion of the current and impending uses of the technology. Next participants learn to make a RFID reader-detector. This detector consists of a circuit board and casing that can easily attach to a person's key ring. The detector will be programmed to light up, vibrate or make sounds when a RFID reader is within range. The workshop continues in the "field" to test the detectors. At this time participants have the opportunity to wear Zapped! clothing items designed by da Costa, Schulte and Singer. The clothing will have fiberoptic material embedded in the fabric, which lights up when in proximity of an RFID reader. The fashion line isused for playful public performances, alerting the public of RFID existence as well as making a colorful statement.

The construction and use of RFID reader-detectors will, over time, improve public understanding of how RFID technology is used. Currently there are very few RFID readers in spaces accessible to the public, but this is expected to change dramatically very soon. The future of the privacy debate will hinge on the locations and density with which RFID reading devices are deployed in the years ahead, and our goal is to make the process both visible and interesting to as many people as possible.





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