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Nervous about RFID? EZ-Pass does it already

In discussing the emerging applications for RFID (Radio Frequency ID) tags, privacy concerns inevitably come up. Huge value exists in the supply chain for rfid tags, but you can bet that marketers salivate over the sort of Minority Report targeted marketing that could gather customer info via passive scans. The backlash is real, and in some ways, justified. However, retail purchases could easily be run through a machine to deactivate (burn off) their tags, rendering them useless.
The more subtle privacy issues have already moved to places where live tags simultaneously provide both benefit and privacy risk for consumers. One of those applications is already up and running, and has been for years. To help automate toll collection, New York state has the E-ZPass system, and California the FasTrak, for years now. Mobil has their FastPass dongle for automatic gas debit as well. It’d be an interesting survey to track how many people who are worried about RFID in the abstract are cheerful users of it now.
That convenience is not without overhead. The AP reports that this data is already being used for tracking purposes. NY state officials are already mining this data to support criminal investigations.

The New York Thruway System has received 128 subpoenas from investigators since 1998, and has turned over records in response to 61 of them, said Terry O’Brien, a spokesman for the thruway system.

And here’s an example for the libertarians among us:

According to a newspaper report, New York City officials last month transferred 30 detectives out of the narcotics bureau for allegedly claiming false overtime. They were discovered passing through E-ZPass lanes miles from where they were supposed to be working.

I hate mindlessly mouthing quotes, but Scott McNealy’s “get over it” comes unbidden to mind.

Source: originally an AP story, which seems now preserved only on blogs (updated 2/10/2004). See this blog (since their is so basic, you must scroll down or search to the entry for Dec 14, 2003) . The original title of the article was “E-ZPass Card an Investigative Tool” from THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, 12/12/2003. Scott McNealy quote from the 1999 Jini launch is discussed here