It seems as if the path to instant notoriety as a technology guru these days is to find fault -- real or imagined -- with some form of RFID.  RFID is a hot topic and one that most people don't (or won't) understand, which makes it easy to misrepresent.  So, for those who'd like to become an overnight celebrity, herewith, the 10 ten things you need to do to become a messenger of panic and doom.

Top 10 List of Things You Need to Be an RFID Critic

10. Refer to RFID transponders as RFIDs or Arfids.  It makes them sound somehow sinister -- like some invading force of semi-autonomous micro-robots.

9. Include references to other types of threats to personal privacy.  Pretend they're somehow related to RFID.  Veiled or oblique references are the best because they can't be disputed.

8. Make reference to what "They" -- the "They" who are always only "They" -- might be able to do at some point (whether it's feasible or not).  You can then assert that "They" -- the evil conspiracy that thinks you're so special that "They" will install a sophisticated, world-wide, multi-trillion-dollar RFID reader network to track your movements from space -- are behind the use of RFIDs.

7. Throw in a few legitimate concerns about privacy and security to make yourself seem credible -- but be sure to cast doubt on any claim by the RFID industry that it's working on ways to address them.

6. Ignore the fact that RFID transponders need an antenna and that range is related to antenna size.  That way, you can claim that RFID chips can be "virtually undetectable" but still read from a great distance.

5. Act as if all the futuristic speculations about the potential uses of RFID are credible and, in fact, might even be being used today without our knowledge.  That way, you can point to things such as one consultant’s very speculative concept of "smart dust" -- miniscule, sensor-enabled RFID transponders that create a self-organizing network -- as a real threat to privacy today.  And, you can even invent some of your own possible uses just for fun.

4. Make reference to tests that support your beliefs but don't give specific references.  Best of all are "the government's own test results that they won't release" since it adds credibility to your statements and makes people wonder about the government's intentions.  (No one will ask how you know about these tests since the results are being kept secret.)

3. Ignore as many of the actual capabilities and features of the technology as possible.  That way, you can assert that a security flaw in an early, proprietary form of RFID transponder represents a security danger in every type of RFID.  Or pretend that metal doesn't block RF signals.  That way, you can insist that high-tech thieves will be able to read RFID transponders in the trunk of your car.

2. Be ignorant of the effect of RF "noise" in a reading environment.  That way, you can claim that by using an extremely powerful RF source (that is probably hazardous to anyone in the vicinity) and a very large antenna, you can actually "hear" the response of an RFID transponder well beyond its design range.  The fact that amplifying the response will also amplify environmental RF noise, making it impossible to determine even if there is a response, is just too inconvenient.  So pretend it doesn't happen.

1. Act as if you truly believe your own hype about security flaws and the dangers of RFID.  It's great publicity and might even get you press coverage -- and that's generally good for business.