ong-range access control for vehicles, such as GM's OnStar system. Additional microwave RFID applications WPANs include electronic highway toll collection; reading of seismic activity, greatly sim- plifying remote data collection; and vehicle tire tracking. RFID Privacy There are some major privacy concerns regarding RFID use, including the following: The purchaser of an item will not necessarily be aware of the presence of the tag or be able to remove it. The tag can be read at a distance without the knowledge of the individual. If a tagged item is paid for by credit card or in conjunction with use of a loyalty card, it would be possible to tie the unique ID of that item to the identity of the purchaser. Tags create, or are proposed to create, globally unique serial numbers for all products, even though that would create privacy problems and is unneces- sary for most applications. The ability to continue to enjoy a lifestyle that offers relative anonymity today is undermined by the presence of tags and readers. Governments could obtain information gathered by RFID readers for the surveillance or monitoring of citizens' activities. Equally frightening, such information could be misused by hackers and criminals. Even our most intimate activities could be monitored if tags were imple- mented in everyday objects such as floor tiles, shelf paper, cabinets, appli- ances, exercise equipment, medications, medical implants, and all sorts of packaged products and consumer goods. Most concerns revolve around the fact that RFID tags affixed to products remain functional even after the products have been purchased and taken home and thus can be used for surveillance and other nefarious purposes unrelated to their supply- chain inventory functions. Although RFID tags are only officially intended for short- distance use, they can be interrogated from greater distances by anyone who has a high-gain antenna, potentially allowing the contents of a house to be scanned at a distance. Even short-range scanning is a concern if all th