All cell phones will come packed with an RFID chip by next summer

[ensho]

http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9595_22-315292.html?tag=nl.e539


All cell phones will come packed with an RFID chip by next summer — giving your phone the possibility of also becoming the keys to your car or house.


That was the prediction of Ericsson's vice-president of systems architecture, Håkan Djuphammar, speaking at the company's Business Innovation Forum in Stockholm on Tuesday.

He told delegates: "A year from now, basically every new phone sold will have . It's a two-way, bio-directional RFID communication link that makes this device work as a tag or reader."

Djuphammar said devices with RFID chips will have a secure environment on the SIM card, where "trusted identities" or "secure elements" can be downloaded. This will enable phones to take on other roles, such as the keys for your car or house, or a credit card or concert ticket. He said Ericsson is working with a utilities company that has 700 separate unmanned facilities and around 15,000 keys — a logistical nightmare it wants to eliminate via the use of RFID-enabled mobiles.

"They don't know really where those keys are, so they want to replace all the locks with RFID locks, put RFID-capable phones in the hands of all their personnel, and then they can control the access to these sites."

Using RFID in this way would enable a mobile to be assigned to open a door for a certain period of time only, meaning the company could better manage access to its facilities, while also replacing the hassle of dealing with thousands of physical keys.

-snip-

"That is a typical win-win, where the operators share their assets/knowledge through a broker and the GPS company can sell a service to the end user. The end user wins, the GPS service provider wins, the broker provider wins and the operator wins," he added.
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the end of keys??

[villager]

1. so when you lose your cell phone, you lose your keys at the same time?

n/t

[Rabrrrrrr]

3. and your credit card, and your everthing else that they want to bundle into it.

Convenient.

Technology always has a wonderful upside, and a terrible downside. Just like everything in life.

[krispos42]

4. Yup

Although I understand they have this in Korea already. YOu can just wave your cell phone at, say, a vending machine to buy something and the cost of the Cheetos appears on your monthly bill.

Should be interesting, I guess.

[redqueen]

9. How does that work?

Do people have to ensure they walk a minimum distance from vending machines in order to not accidentally pay for someone else's stuff?

[krispos42]

17. I'm not sure exactly...

...I read about it in an acticle about how our cell-phone network was behind Japan's and Korea's. I presume there's a "Pay by phone" button on the vending machine itself that you press, then you activate a PIN-protected feature of your cell phone. Once you pick your food or drink, the vending machine verifies that your phone's number and account is valid, then would send your carrier a charge and drop the purchase down into the slot. Kinda like those ringtone or dating servies or that KGB information service or joke-of-the-day companies bill you for using their service.

Probably via Bluetooth or RFID. You might have to press your phone up against a plate or something to keep from charging the wrong person if you're using RFID.

[TheWraith]

22. Back up... KGB information service?

This sounds like something I need to subscribe to.

[krispos42]

32. "Knowledge Generation Bureau"

They advertise on TV. For 99 cents they'll answer any question you text them.

:shrug:

Never used it, though.

[TheWraith]

35. Oh. I thought you meant a different KGB.

I would CERTAINLY pay THAT group a dollar a question and not regret it. :D

[krispos42]

37. Yeah, I think that's their advertising schtick...

Of course if you asked the real KGB a question, they would answer it, but then they'd have to kill you. :-)

[havocmom]

23. Gonna make life so much easier

for criminals

[LiberalFighter]

29. My thought exactly. And they may not need to have physical possession of original.

Just retrieve the info with a wireless device.

[anigbrowl]

33. Nope. One call from you will switch everything off.

As opposed to having to buy new phone, new locks, call 4 different banks and credit card cos. etc.

[TankLV]

38. in the next REPUKE administration...

[NV Whino]

24. The next iPhone app...

iCheetos.

[ecstatic]

7. lol nt

[imdjh]

11. I'm thinking you would need a password.

But as in all things techy, surely one will be able to customize it so you don't have to enter that pesky password.

I have this laptop password protected, it locks up if idle for more than a few minutes, and I live alone. I got tired of visitors in my home, friends and family, sitting down at my computer without permission. It's not that I have anything to hide per se, it's that my bills, electronic receipts, and open forum windows are often on the desktop- it just felt like someone sitting down and reading my mail. I now have a guest account that visitors can sign into without a password.

[TheMadMonk]

39. Same as losing your wallet (well trousers anyways) :D /nt

[TheWraith]

2. Yeah... thanks but no thanks.

Being able to personally ID somebody at medium ranged based on their cell phone? Privacy invasion central. I'm glad I don't use Nokia.

[imdjh]

13. You have to admit, it would be fun if you could call people in neighboring cars in traffic.

[poverlay]

14. I've been dreaming of that since I was a kid. I don't know about good though. I would probably be

telling them off more often than not!

[TheWraith]

16. True. And there's lots of other uses for that.

Like flirting, for instance. :D But there are ways to make that possible without automatically making every cell phone a public ID that you can't turn off or hide.

[eppur_se_muova]

36. One stand-up comic suggested your cell no. should be your license plate no. nt

[Auggie]

5. Okay with me as long as cell phone ownership remains not mandatory

[Echo In Light]

21. Won't need to be legally mandatory in order to be culturally "mandatory."

[wolfgangmo]

6. So the corporations or other crooks could enter your house at will

After all they don't need a key, just a code.

[anigbrowl]

34. No one is making you remove your mechanical lock

Some people really don't think things through before posting. Amazing.

[Democrats_win]

8. FUBAR. People refuse to pay taxes for parks but will overpay for this garbage.

[redqueen]

12. Taxes don't give the ego boost that conspicuous consumption does.

It's sad, but there it is.

[blogslut]

10. SMS billing

They've been doing it for years in other countries.

[jimshoes]

15. Wonder if the thing could be used to track you

everywhere you went? If it emits an ID signal any receiver could pick it up, no?

[MineralMan]

18. That capability already exists in most cell phones.

The question remains: why would anyone want to track you?

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

26. They have their reasons I'm sure

Our Vice President was concerned about implanting people with chips. It was one of the questions he asked John Roberts at his confirmation hearing.

[phaseolus]

19. It has to be pretty close

Depending on the chip, the antenna, and whatever electromagnetic noise happens to be around, anywhere between an inch to 1-2 feet.

About 10 years ago I was working on a factory automation project that was going to use a particular RFID chip that was developed to be molded into automobile tires (even though my application didn't involve tires.) Purportedly it was there for inventory purposes, and to figure out where improperly-disposed old tires came from.

Knowing that info about every tire purchased in the U.S. is kept in a database for warranty & recall purposes, it's not too hard to imagine the possibility of RFID antennae embedded in roadways that would enable someone to keep track of the location of every car. It would be very expensive to implement this, though... but we have the technology.

[Ezlivin]

30. Actually you can wardrive and find RFIDs

I would place anything that contains an RFID chip in a protective covering.

Watch this video on YouTube to see an ethical hacker wardriving and querying passport RFIDs. You can also read an article on The Register about his efforts.

[JerseygirlCT]

20. I'm not liking this stuff

I'm not even happy that my car key now needs a battery or I'm screwed. And I can't make extra copies by running to the local hardware store.

My phone is to make a few calls, period. I use that old-fashioned thing, cash, to pay for things. I don't want more basically useless bells and whistles to complicate things even further, thanks.

[Ignis]

25. Oh, great. Because RFIDs are SO secure.

Not.

[TheWatcher]

27. Ahhhh, all part of the New "Freedom"

The Noose of The Police State keeps getting tightened little by little, and of course most of the Sheep Public will go along with it, because "cool" and "convenience" completely short-circuit the ability to see what the real long term purposes of this could be.

And it's ALWAYS presented to the Public as "reasonable", "cool", "convenient", "look at this shiny new gadget to make your life better and you can think less", "it's for your safety."

Americans sometimes seem almost DESPERATE to experience tyranny.

I think, sooner than they think, they are going to get a chance at this rate.

[Joe Fields]

28. I am 52 and have never owned a cell phone. Never plan to.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

31. They're trying out universal cards in South Korea.

Debit card, ID card, library card, bus pass, etc. all in one card.

Haven't heard how it's worked out, but I'm guessing there was a lot less of the conspiracy theorist nuttery.