Thursday 11th August 2005

Electronic tagging moves closer

When government tests start they'll know where you are

---

This will hide in your number plate

Tests of vehicle number plates incorporating radio tags that can transmit vehicle data to a receiver up to 300 feet away are about to start. The government gave the scheme the green light last week, according to a report in Wired.

The system, based on RFID (radio frequency identification) technology, will allow officials to monitor a car's movements, assuming that an RFID-capable infrastructure is installed on the UK's roads. According to one maker of the so-called 'e-plates', a single reader can identify dozens of vehicles fitted with an e-Plate moving at any speed at a distance of up to 100 metres. Additional roadside infrastructure is minimal, said the e-plate maker, although installation and monitoring costs will undoubtedly be huge.

Such a system is already in limited use in the US, where the Department of Homeland Security has issued RFID tags to non-US vehicles as they enter the country. The US government is watching the progress of the UK trials closely with the aim of implementing it more widely over the pond.

On the plus side, RFID tagging could mean no stopping at toll points and higher capture rates for cars without insurance or tax, as well as stolen cars.

On the downside, your movements will be visible to anyone with the privileges to access the RFID network -- and maybe even some who aren't. While technology exists to make the data anonymous once a transaction such a toll payment is complete, civil liberties groups believe that it's unlikely the government will make use of it.

• Wired story

[Don]

Be afraid.

This important technology has the potential to eliminate cloned cars, road tax cheating etc etc.

Similarly the potential for misuse is staggering.

[m1spw]

Is it just me or does 300ft/100m seem a very short distance? And surely if the tag is in the number plate, you can just fit a new plate?

[Wildfire]

Don said:

Be afraid. This important technology has the potential to eliminate cloned cars, road tax cheating etc etc. Similarly the potential for misuse is staggering.

But I can garauntee that all the pros will be pushed forward and the cons swept under the carpet, until mass misuse becomes common and then we will be stuck with it.

It will start out small and eventually every movement you make will be tracked. Speeding fines will become a daily occurrence, more points will be allowed on licenses to gain more revenue, but still more people will be losing their license.

[mondeoman]

and the business of cloned plates will be massive, and the chances of getting caught will be minimal, as trafpol will be taken off the roads even more in the belief that electronics can do their job better.
:tossers:

[chris_crossley]

This is another private company push. I am sure the Company are lobbying hard to promote the money making oppertunities of the new system. I would also bet that a few MPS are on the payroll in one way or another.

Brave new world

[DavidCane]

If this happens, I'm emmigrating. I don't want some government body watching every I go, how fast I go there and deciding how much to fine me for it.

Once this is introduced, the UK stops being a free country.

[xm5er]

This is the stuff they will bring in instead of sat tracking.

Government MO

1 - Create a big media show about bringing in a vastly expensive way of tracking cars for road pricing.

2 - Allow the media to have a good moan, tell everyone how expensive it is and how impossible it will be to implement.

3 - Quickly legislate to implement a much cheaper alternative that can start to be installed right away.

Que sighs of relief and lack of media coverage because we have merely been indecently assaulted rather than gang raped.

[joe_90]

This will hide in your number plate - oh no it won't

[Rob_the_Sparky]

Anyone noted the use for toll roads? Me thinks an alternative plan is being investigated.

[bjwoods]

So if it stops working (the tag in your plate that is) how would they know.....

Oh of course cameras everywhere to read plates to see if the plates are working...

Would there be paenalies, fines if the tag stops working?

Bit unfair, really, as tags could go wrong, and how would you know, for perfectly innocent reasons...

Totaly badly thought out, yet another company lobbying to majke a BIG buck.

B

[rdhawkins]

"Additional roadside infrastructure is minimal,"

Surely this wouldn't be minimal if they have to have receivers every 100M plus have the linked to some central site.

Unless they already have devices out there that can read them

[roop]

Quite scary that we will all have these tags on our cars although I can see that there are some advantages over the alternatives...:

There are hundreds of CCTV cameras covering roads across the UK. ANPR could be added to process these images and read our plates (SPECS style) and our positions could be noted. Given the camera infrastructure is already in place this could be rolled out reasonably quickly. To avoid this you need to remove, obscure or fake your plate all of which are easily spotted.

RFID tags are not particularly intelligent being very low power devices although interestingly, data can be written to them as well as read from them. Read/write distances up to 100 feet are in fact very impressive, although I expect 'real world' operating range is something like half that, perhaps only a third. The data on tags can be easily modified with the right equipment. A few hundred pounds buys a hand held reader/writer that will transpond with any tag type from any manufacturer (eg: Philips / Gemplus / Intermec) so you could clone someone elses tag / fake yours so it's something completely different etc. The advantage is that this cannot be spotted by police / cameras / joe bloggs unlike a tampered plate.

Scarier still is GPS logging. Much more capability than a stupid tag. Comine the two though and It is perfectly feasible for an on-board GPS device to write a log to your plate's tag which could be uploaded to the transponder as you drive by...!

>> Edited by roop on Thursday 11th August 12:05

[matt_fp]

Easy way around it.

-If plate is mounted on boot remove boot lid, if on bumper remove bumper.

-Take microwave oven, remove door and jam kill switch on door mechanism.

-Set mircrowave to 15 mins and posistion 1/2 metre from number plate

-Plug in microwave.

- Wait for 'Ding'

- RFID tag is still in the plate, plate undamaged but the tag isn't going to transmit anything ever again.

Matt

[roop]

Unfortunately this doesn't work with all tags Tends just to be the RF powered ones with the big induction antennas (eg: ones attached to retail merchandise / embedded in bank notes etc). Car mounted ones will have a power source (usually lithium cell) to ge the range and read/write speed up and are usually unaffected IIRC.

matt_fp said:

Trash tag by microwaving it

>> Edited by roop on Thursday 11th August 12:15

[shadowninja]

Don't you normally tag criminals?

[mr_p]

rdhawkins said:

"Additional roadside infrastructure is minimal," Surely this wouldn't be minimal if they have to have receivers every 100M plus have the linked to some central site. Unless they already have devices out there that can read them

They'd only need to put receivers at junctions, better to have a long distance between them anyway, easier to double up as specs style speed enforcement.

[apache]

With this govts record of raising revenue from the motorist, you can bet this will mean

Toll roads everywhere in place of tax disc

Even less plod on the roads

Speed detection by stealth

[KB_S1]

shadowninja said:

Don't you normally tag criminals?

But we are all criminals, we just haven't unproven it yet!

[roosevelt]

Wouldn't we all have to sign something under the data protection act??
Especially if info is registered with Ageny A who provide information to Agencies b,c,d,e,f etc....??
What about when the car is sold?

[Muncher]

So road charging per mile driven occurs.

Prices ramped up to fund massive infrastructure required.

Speeding fines to be issued as deductions from your salary every time you exceed the posted limit.

Traffic police abolished as enough revenue can be made from speedy fines.

Those who drive stolen/uninsured/unregistered vehicles get away with it.


When that happens I'm off...