In-person payments have been a hassle. Especially when you’re part of a big line at the store, waiting for your turn to come up. RFID or Radio Frequency Identification cards are state-of-the-art cards that utilize electromagnetic fields to pick up tags on your belongings.
Thus, in the case of card payments, when a digital scanner is brought close to your RFID-embedded card, the scanner sends out an electromagnetic pulse that picks up all the digital data stored in your personal card. Usually, this information is what is needed to pay for the items you are purchasing or any credentials that need verifying. In this article, we’ll be going through how simple and time effective this entire process is.
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Much Simpler than a Barcode
Traditional, regular barcodes ask to have yourself equipped with clunky barcode readers that have their own set of demands. Such as, you need to have the barcode reader placed within a certain range of the barcode so a specific item can be scanned. Additionally, these pesky readers demand that you align your barcode or they’ll refuse to scan, siting that an error has occurred. And this entire process eventually becomes a nuisance to deal with.
RFID technology bypasses this entire scenario by providing a comfortable range and a radial zone to pick up any nearby scanners. All you need is your scanner to come equipped with good Wi-Fi so the transaction can be approved by the concerned bank. Internet services like those of CenturyLink help with this by providing fast, efficient Wi-Fi services that are as good as their packages.
Broader Usage
RFIDs don’t stick to just one category. Over the years, they have expanded to many industries. Being incorporated readily because of their quick and easy-to-use applications. In the automobile industry, RFID chips can be attached to a vehicle under production, and their ongoing progress until completion is stored on these devices. This turns out to be a huge help in keeping a record of mass-produced vehicles as they don’t have to be monitored every now and then along with the staff that is in charge. Through this, a vehicle may be safely moved to warehouses and production units without having to be worried about it.
Similarly, there’s also the animal, or more specifically, the cattle industry. Cattles get RFID chips implanted in their ears. This helps the farmer/owner quickly identify their identity. Or any other information they may be carrying along with them. For example, if it is a male or female. Child or adult. Sold to them or born on the farm. There are lots of ways to get creative with this and it also paves the way for smart farming.
Futuristic Potential
Similar to animals, but obviously not directly calling us one, humans are also choosing to opt for RFID chips being implanted just beneath the skin. An ideal area to have this done is just behind the wrist. This helps your electrical devices recognize you instantly and there is no additional need to unlock or prove your identity. This would work in the case of unlocking laptops or phones.
A fingerprint sensor or eye reader would not be needed anymore. Adding on to this, people can also use this feature to unlock their cars or open their house locks. Suppose you’re carrying lots of groceries and want to unlock your front door but both your hands are loaded with items. In that case, you could open your door with a flick or wave of your wrist, embedded with a chip, to instantly open the lock and head inside with ease. Pretty neat, right?
Security Concerns
A false belief running these days is that RFID chips are less secure than, say, regular cards because they can fall prey to digital theft. This is untrue in many ways but for your peace of mind we’ve accumulated some of the best ways to ensure that your cards get the best safety available:
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Use RFID Protective Cases
These days, many leather and/or wallet companies are coming up with cases that are specially designed to keep your RFID cards safe from any scanners or detectors they may pass through. These cases or wallets are beautifully designed and maintain high security through their scan-proof design. So you can look good and feel secure at the same time.
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Aluminum Foil for Science Nerds
RFID signals hate aluminum foils because of their reflective surfaces. If you’d like to act extra funky, you could wrap up your cards in aluminum to prevent any and all signals from passing through to the chips. Science has you covered.
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Your Body Has Its Own Defense Mechanism
Believe it or not, your body has a unique feature in place that can help mask your card if you hold it tight enough. Naturally, our bodies are 70% water and this water isn’t diluted. It’s actually salt water that prevents RFID signals from passing through due to the high salt content in it. Hold the card tight enough and let good old H2O and NaCl do the trick. Who says science isn’t fun?!
Conclusion
We’ve done our best to shed some light on the awesomeness these nifty little chips bring with them. Check out more tips and tricks you can enjoy when equipped with these and be assured that their application will only keep on growing stronger over the years. The lines of digital and physical embedding are getting blurred by the day and we want you on the bandwagon to bigger, hopefully, safer, discoveries along the way.
Janice has been with businesskinda for 5 years, writing copy for client websites, blog posts, EDMs and other mediums to engage readers and encourage action. By collaborating with clients, our SEO manager and the wider businesskinda team, Janice seeks to understand an audience before creating memorable, persuasive copy.