Brits to get RFID-chipped license plates

The UK Department for Transport just gave the go-ahead for a trial of new, RFID-enabled license plates aimed to make vehicles trackable in Britain. Unlike passive RFID which only transmits over short distances, the e-Plate licenses use active RFID technology to transmit vehicle identification numbers and other data to readers over 300 feet away. Not surprisingly, US officials will be monitoring the trial closely with an eye toward bringing mandatory RFID-tagged plates to the States. Active RFID is currently in limited usage on US roadways, where the Department of Homeland Security is issuing RFID tags to foreign freight and passenger vehicles as they enter the country. Privacy advocates cringe in horror at the thought of RFID license plates being used as backdoor surveillance tools, while proponents argue, predictably, that active RFID will help, you know, save the world from terrorism.

[Via textually]