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Consumers Rejection of RFID Passports Consistent With Research Findings

RFID Consumer Buzz Study by BIGresearch and Artafact Among 8,500 Consumers Indicates That 66% Fear Abuse by the Government vs. 42% Fearing Abuse by Retailers

RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) used to be an acronym known only by a handful of technology companies and retailers looking to implement slick new supply chain solutions, but it is increasingly becoming a consumer household word. Awareness of RFID among consumers has grown from just 28% in September 2004 to over 40% in March 2005. (Source: RFID Consumer Buzz March 2005)

Government and retailers should sit up and take notice to avoid costly mistakes like the recent faux pas announced yesterday by Wired News where the federal government is rethinking their position on RFID tagging passports based on 2,400 consumer comments.

According to the RFID Consumer Buzz, a quarterly study of consumer awareness, attitudes and opinions about RFID, consumers fear the government even more than retailers when asked how they feel about data being shared about them without their explicit permission. The government ranks top of the list at 66% of RFID aware consumers being concerned.

They are finding out about RFID not from full-disclosure by companies and organizations implementing the tags, but by the mass media and the Internet. TV and Radio News remain the most common way people learn about RFID (25.6% in March 2005) followed closely by the Internet (23.0%). And, over two-thirds of RFID aware consumers are concerned about protecting their privacy with RFID applications.

Learn more about this consumer trend. Sign up for the full report: http://www.bigresearch.com/rfid.htm

About BIGresearch and Artafact LLC

BIGresearch and Artafact LLC are breaking new ground in research providing real-time qualitative and quantitative syndicated market research data. Companies seeking ongoing market intelligence at a lower cost can now routinely tap into their market to identify, track and predict trends as well as gain in-depth proprietary insights about their product and marketing initiatives within clearly identified market segments.

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