Consumers' RFID fear must end - Brussels

After pondering RFID technology for a year, the European Commission has decided Europe cannot live without the chips - but privacy concerns that surround them must be resolved.

According to the EC, the market for RFID is growing rapidly and will contribute €7bn to the community's coffers by 2016. The Commission has now announced it intends to put together a 'stakeholder group' which will be charged with working out a European RFID policy.

The stakeholder group and the EC will also club together to work out by 2008 the social and economic impact of RFID and whether there is a need to introduce legislation to govern its use.

Speaking at the CeBIT trade show yesterday, information society & media commissioner Viviane Reding said that following the consultation launched last year, the Commission had discovered privacy concerns among EC citizens.

She said: "The Commission's Europe-wide public consultation in 2006 identified a strong lack of awareness and considerable concern among citizens. The Commission's RFID strategy will therefore seek to raise awareness, stress the absolute need for citizens to decide how their personal data is used and ensure that Europe removes existing obstacles to RFID's enormous potential."

The Commission is now planning to work on convincing the privacy sceptics. Among its arsenal will be a recommendation on how all those involved with RFID can tackle privacy and data security, as well as informing them how existing privacy legislation applies to RFID; and propose an e-privacy directive as part of an upcoming update of telecoms legislation. Both are expected to be completed this year.

A communication on RFID adopted by the EC said: "With wider use, it becomes essential that the implementation of RFID takes place under a legal framework that affords citizens effective safeguards for fundamental values, health, data protection and privacy."

The EC will also analyse issues of spectrum, standards and environmental health surrounding RFID.