There have been several trials involving using RFID tags on baggage. Now, engineers at University College, London, are working on a prototype system to issue tags to people when they enter airports:
Electronically tagging passengers at airports could help the fight against terrorism, scientists have said.
The prototype technology is to be tested at an airport in Hungary, and could, if successful, become a reality "in two years"....
Dr Paul Brennan, an electrical engineer, is leading the tagging project, known as Optag.
He said: "The basic idea is that airports could be fitted with a network of combined panoramic cameras and RFID (radio frequency ID) tag readers, which would monitor the movements of people around the various terminal buildings."
The plan, he said, would be for each passenger to be issued with a tag at check-in.
He said: "In our system, the location can be detected to an accuracy of 1m, and video and tag data could be merged to give a powerful surveillance capability."...
The project still needs to overcome some hurdles, such as finding a way of ensuring the tags cannot be switched between passengers or removed without notification.
This technology is troubling to anyone concerned with keeping privacy. They want to track people! Think long and hard about the consequences of human implantation of RFID chips, which is the next step from simply handing out tags to people in airports.
Posted by: DS | December 12, 2006 at 04:23 PM