In Darwood & Smitty, a future product is mentioned whose purpose is to stop any sort of remote tracking -- used for transporting "sensitive" packages. Here's the passage from the book:
The two had waited for more than an hour in the Earth Express depot before setting off into the dark on foot. And they even prepared for that, getting a couple of E2’s special Destrackt® boxes — just the size for their wallets — normally used to transport sensitive packages that clients didn’t want traced. Smitty was damn sure that the government could track their real ID cards if it wanted to ... not to mention the government-issued debit/ID cards and the Govway card. And if the government could track them, probably the Jovians or anyone else could too. The boxes would help to keep them hidden.
It's a fine bit of product naming by some future company, and its purpose is a little similar to that of today's RFID wallets. And here's the point: if you don't know what an RFID wallet is, you should.
Today's credit cards are being equipped with Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chips. This means they emit information. The idea is to make it easier for you to check out at stores. In fact, I've read about an ultimate goal of all products being tagged with these chips and scanners being set up so you simply enter a store, grab what you need, and leave. This assumes you have an RFID credit card somewhere on you. When you leave, your products and credit card would be scanned and you would be charged for the products you bought.
This would also prevent shoplifting, because alarms would sound if you tried taking anything outside the store without paying. Unless, of course, you had a way of removing the RFID from the product, or disabling it.
But that brings us back to the wallets. If a store scanner could theoretically scan these at a distance, guess what: so can anyone with a scanner. So thieves can now pick your pocket without touching you. If they're close, they can scan for RFID information being emitted from your purse or wallet. And I've heard that these things are inexpensive.
For the same reason anyone who uses public WiFi should invest in a Keezel, it seems to me that we all ought to start using RFID blockers to protect our credit card information from digital thieves. There are several types -- RFID wallets, as I've mentioned; also individual card blockers for those who want to keep their current wallets; and even RFID cases like the one pictured here, which happens to be very much how I pictured the Destrackt when I first wrote about it.
No matter what the best fit for you, be aware of this technology and -- while it's supposed to create a convenience for you -- how it can hurt you. And do what you need to protect yourself!
Today's credit cards are being equipped with Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chips. This means they emit information. The idea is to make it easier for you to check out at stores. In fact, I've read about an ultimate goal of all products being tagged with these chips and scanners being set up so you simply enter a store, grab what you need, and leave. This assumes you have an RFID credit card somewhere on you. When you leave, your products and credit card would be scanned and you would be charged for the products you bought.
This would also prevent shoplifting, because alarms would sound if you tried taking anything outside the store without paying. Unless, of course, you had a way of removing the RFID from the product, or disabling it.
But that brings us back to the wallets. If a store scanner could theoretically scan these at a distance, guess what: so can anyone with a scanner. So thieves can now pick your pocket without touching you. If they're close, they can scan for RFID information being emitted from your purse or wallet. And I've heard that these things are inexpensive.
For the same reason anyone who uses public WiFi should invest in a Keezel, it seems to me that we all ought to start using RFID blockers to protect our credit card information from digital thieves. There are several types -- RFID wallets, as I've mentioned; also individual card blockers for those who want to keep their current wallets; and even RFID cases like the one pictured here, which happens to be very much how I pictured the Destrackt when I first wrote about it.
No matter what the best fit for you, be aware of this technology and -- while it's supposed to create a convenience for you -- how it can hurt you. And do what you need to protect yourself!
RSS Feed