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JULY 21, 2003
By Jane Black Playing Tag with Shoppers' Anonymity [Page 2 of 2] SHOPLIFTERS, BEWARE! Documents on the Web site of the Auto-ID Center suggest that some companies are eager to integrate RFID, from the manufacturing floor straight through to checkout. One dated October 28, 2002, says that tests beginning in 2003 would focus on "using the low-costs tags at the unit level.... For example, there will be different tag types for Right Guard deodorant vs. Mach II packages (where the tag will be inside the package) and 2-liter Coke bottles (from which the tags will hang.)" Other products scheduled for testing include Caress soap, Pantene shampoo, and Huggies diapers, the document says. Such tags wouldn't just help companies track sales. The MIT documents also mention tests involving an antitheft smart shelf that would "detect anomalous patterns of item removal" for Gillette products. For example, if a shopper removes more than a few items at once, the shelf could either use a computer-generated voice to thank the shopper for buying so much -- or alert a security officer or a surveillance camera to make sure everything is O.K. Again, this is no joke. Gillette products like Duracell batteries and Mach III blade replacements are frequent targets of shoplifters due to their compact size, high value, and ease of resale. According to a Gillette spokesman, no shelf-level tests are under way at this time in the U.S. But British grocery giant Tesco and German retailer Metro are believed to be conducting such tests. These retailers were unavailable for immediate comment. "NEUTRALIZE OPPOSITION." RFID backers are concerned enough about a consumer backlash to have asked public relations firm Fleishman-Hillard to help smooth the way toward implementation of chips in everyday consumer products. Fleishman-Hillard's report -- also available on the Web -- advises that "consumers are very concerned about invasions of their privacy" and are "inclined to believe that businesses have little incentive to protect consumers' personal information." They're right on these scores. But rather than tailoring the technology to address such concerns, Fleishman-Hillard calls for a proactive plan to "neutralize opposition" and "mitigate consumer backlash." The documents advise product spokespeople to emphasize the "inevitability" of the technology and recommend characterizing RFID as a simple evolution of the bar code, rather than a new technology with futuristic capabilities (exactly the point that Wal-Mart is already making). The documents also suggest creating a privacy council made up of "well known, credible, and credentialed experts" who might otherwise be "potentially adversarial advocates," such as members of Washington (D.C.) privacy group the Electronic Privacy Information Center. EPIC has said it won't serve on such a council or consult for other companies. THREE SIMPLE RULES. Auto-ID Center Executive Director Kevin Ashton acknowledges the documents' validity, though he does take issue with the interpretation: "There's no smoking gun in any of those documents," he says. The uproar over shelf testing is premature, he cautions, since company plans and schedules remain fluid: "The big news is that Wal-Mart has decided to use electronic product codes in all its shipping and palettes. That's faster than anyone expected, and right now it needs the time and attention of everyone in the RFID community." Ashton takes strong issue with Albrecht that the Auto-ID Center is dismissive of consumer privacy. In an interview with BusinessWeek Online, he outlined three pillars of privacy that he believes must be included to make RFID tags a success. First, consumers must be notified if an RFID tag is in any product they purchase. Second, each chip must have a "kill command," which means it can be turned off either on principle when the customer leaves the store or upon request. Third, no individual chip will be linked to any personally identifiable information: The chip will indicate that razor blade pack 123 was purchased, not that it was purchased by Jane Black. The Auto-ID Center doesn't have the power to enforce such practices. But smart retailers will. Following Ashton's three simple principles would permit retailers to be more efficient and provide lower prices without impinging on customer privacy. And that would make Wal-Mart, Katherine Albrecht, and millions of shoppers very happy.
 Black covers privacy issues for BusinessWeek Online in her twice-monthly Privacy Matters column Edited by Douglas Harbrecht Get BusinessWeek directly on your desktop with our RSS feeds.  Add BusinessWeek news to your Web site with our headline feed. Click to buy an e-print or reprint of a BusinessWeek or BusinessWeek Online story or video. To subscribe online to BusinessWeek magazine, please click here. Learn more, go to the BusinessWeekOnline home page  | | |
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