Website to Provide a Balanced Source of News and Information About Emerging RFID Privacy Concerns

Las Vegas, Nev.–MIT, a world-class educational institution and HID Global, a leading provider of access control products and services, debuted the RFID and Privacy Website at the ISC West show in Las Vegas, Nevada. The new Website at rfidprivacy.mit.edu/access will help educate visitors about radio frequency identification technology, its current uses, its potential uses, and where potential privacy concerns emerge. The Website is part of a broader ongoing partnership between HID and MIT to develop new technology, create new scholarship and anchor a wider global discussion on the role of RFID technology in society.

Dan Greenwood, attorney and MIT lecturer, revealed the contents of the site that includes sections on how the technology works, where RFID applications are in use today, new uses for the technology, and policy initiatives at the state and federal level. “MIT recognizes the need to examine the intersection of RFID technology and public policy and to open a dialogue with interested stakeholders. This Website gives us the opportunity to frame the dialogue in a way that leads to the creation of public policy that supports both privacy interests and the efficient use of RFID technology.”

HID Global supports the responsible use of RFID technology so that privacy protections are considered in all applications, according to Denis Hébert, president and CEO. “We are pleased to be working with MIT on this Website and want the site to serve as a forum for an open and interactive discussion of RFID and privacy issues,” he said. “As a leader in our industry, we are cognizant of our responsibility in taking a proactive approach to this emerging and important discussion.”

About MIT Massachusetts Institute of Technology–a coeducational, privately-endowed research university–is dedicated to advancing knowledge and educating students in science, technology, and other areas of scholarship that will best serve the nation and the world in the 21st century. The Institute has more than 900 faculty and nearly 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students and is organized into five schools: Architecture and Planning; Engineering; Humanities; Arts and Social Sciences; Management; and Science and the Whitaker College of Health Sciences and Technology. The MIT e-Commerce Architecture Program (eCAP) at ecitizen.mit.edu, jointly housed at the MIT Media Lab and the MIT Design Lab, acts as the point of contact at MIT for this collaboration. eCap is an initiative to explore the intersection of legal, policy, business, and technology information architectures.

About HID Global HID Global is a leading supplier and manufacturer in the access control industry, serving customers worldwide with proximity and contactless smart card technologies; central station managed access controllers; secure and custom card solutions; digital identity and photo card management software solutions; and electronic cylinders. Headquartered in Irvine , California , HID Global operates international offices that support more than 100 countries and is a member of ASSA ABLOY Global Technologies Division. To learn more, please visit www.hidcorp.com.