Article in the Guardian on the use of RFid in the UK.
“in the early summer, at its superstore in Newmarket Road, Cambridge, Tesco began the world’s first trial of a so-called “smart shelf”.
Razor blades are one of the most frequently shoplifted items. Small but relatively expensive, they can be slipped into a pocket. The smart shelf was designed to house packets of Gillette Mach 3 razor blades, each augmented with a tiny RFid tag. The shelf contained a reader and – controversially – a small CCTV camera. Each time a pack of razors was removed, the tag triggered the camera and a picture was taken.
Tesco began the trial without much fuss but within weeks, a determined knot of protestors appeared outside the store…”
Labour Member of Parliament Tom Watson (who has a weblog) “has applied for a parliamentary debate on the use of RFid. What he will advocate, and what Chris McDermott and Caspian are supporting – at the very least – is something like a code of conduct for RFid. A set of guarantees that the tags, if introduced, will be deactivated at the point of purchase.”