First up in session was Ravi Pappu from ThingMagic talking about security and privacy in the EPC network. The first that needs to be made is that the EPC network is going to be some SCARY SHIT. I don’t mean to swear, but if Christian fundamentalists thought the UPC was the mark of the beast then EPC is the antichrist. Essentially everything is linked through this global network to track down EXACTLY what product a particular EPC code relates to. A very good point is that the benefits of this system have yet to be clearly articulated. There isn’t a reason of yet of why consumers should like this stuff. After that he went into various threats to privacy resulting from RFID. The most interesting of which were the constellation effect where all your RFID tags create a shadow around you making you easy to track. Also is the possibility that transactions amongst individuals would be trackable. I’d imagine this would be the RIAA/MPAA’s dream as they could track the second hand market and shut it down.
Then came what was the coolest piece of technology at the show, the blocker tag from Ari Juels of RSA Security. Due to the way that RFID is structured there can obviously be contention amongst devices when a reader is present. Basically what the blocker does is stop playing nice and always say yes. In this respect it says it is both a rutabega, a 12 pack of gilette razors and a roll of toilet paper at the same. This makes it impossible to use readers when you’re around one of these. However, this isn’t playing nice and we need to respect some standards (otherwise I’d already own a cell phone blocker and turn it on during meetings). Thus there is the proposal to create a privacy space in RFID. So when you purchase a device a bit is flipped to move the device from the normal space to the privacy space where the blocker will block requesting it. However, the blocker is still theoretical and has not yet been built, leading to two problems. First, it might not work in which case there is need to find a new solution. The second is that it might work in which case it would be outlawed by the government. Fortunately for us there is a solution, line a bag with tinfoil and that should keep those nasty signals out and away from the stuff in the bag. Now the RFID chip embedded in your sandal is another story.