Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)

Context

After a high-level security review for the forthcoming Amarnath Yatra, the government has decided to track all pilgrims using Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags. 

• The decision has been taken amid heightened security threats to the pilgrimage.

About

• Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is a wireless tracking system that consists of tags and readers.
• Radio waves are used to communicate information/identity of objects or people to nearby readers – devices that can be hand-held or built into fixed positions like poles or buildings.
• The tags can carry encrypted information, serial numbers and short descriptions.
• There are also high-memory tags like the ones designed for use in the aviation industry.

Types of RFID tags

• Active RFIDs use their own power source, mostly batteries.
• Passive RFIDs, on the other hand, are activated through the reader using the electromagnetic energy it transmits.
• Active tags have a longer read range, around 300 ft, compared to passive tags.

How do RFIDs work?

• RFID tags use an integrated circuit and an antenna to communicate with a reader using radio waves at several different frequencies – low frequency (LF), high frequency (HF), and ultra-high frequency (UHF).
• The message sent back by the tag in form or radio waves is translated into data and analysed by the host computer system. 
• Unlike Barcodes, RFIDs do not require direct line of sight to identify objects. They also have a bigger range.