Euro cash could be embedded with radio frequency identification tags if a reported deal between the European Central Bank and Hitachi becomes reality
Published:
10 July 2003 y., Thursday
The bank is working on a hush-hush project to embed RFIDs, wireless transponders the size of a grain of sand, into the fibers of euro bank notes to foil would-be counterfeiters. The bills currently have a number of security marks, including threads that glow under ultraviolet light, but as the euros wear thin, these are less perceptible.
If the deal goes through, it will be a boon to the nascent RFID industry, which has long been in search of a market. However, consumer privacy advocates have questions about other possible uses of the tags.
A spokesman for the ECB in Frankfurt confirmed on July 4 that the bank intends to add further protection to the euro and that the next series will incorporate updated features, "because technology is advancing rapidly and you have to keep pace with that."
The spokesman, Jean Rodriguez, stopped short of identifying the new features or their makers, saying all contracts with third parties are subject to strict confidentiality agreements.
A Hitachi spokesman acknowledged awareness of the ECB project, but said his company was under a nondisclosure agreement and could not confirm whether Hitachi would provide RFID chips for the bank, which released 8 billion euros in January 2002. The deadline for the project has been reported as 2005.
Šaltinis:
wired.com
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.
The most popular articles
The EBRD is supporting the modernisation of transport infrastructure in Serbia with a €150 million sovereign loan to finalise the construction of a new motorway section along the strategic Corridor X.
more »
The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today completed the first review of Romania’s economic performance under a program supported by a 24-month Stand-By Arrangement (SBA).
more »
The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today approved a three-year, SDR 13.57 million (about US$21.5 million) arrangement under the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) for the Union of the Comoros.
more »
The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today completed the second review of Mongolia's economic performance under a program supported by an 18-month Stand-By Arrangement (SBA).
more »
Parex banka has established a subsidiary, SIA NIF (“Nekustamo īpašumu fonds”, or “Real Estate Fund”), which will professionally manage assets that are not related to the Bank’s core business.
more »
In his address at the Lithuanian-Belarusian Business Forum “Belarus and Baltic States: new prospects for cooperation”, Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius has pointed out that Lithuania sees Belarus as creating its future in Europe...
more »
JDRF Employs VoIP and Web-Based Video Collaboration Enabled by Cisco for More Effective Teamwork Among Employees and Constituents.
more »
On 16 September 2009, AB Bank SNORAS group finished the transaction during which it purchased from AB “Invalda” with its own funds 100 per cent of the shares of AB “Finasta įmonių finansai”, managing AB Bank “Finasta”.
more »
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that the worst U.S. recession since the Great Depression was probably over, but the recovery will take time.
more »
Growth expected to return in the second half of 2009. Forecasts are still uncertain but fears of a severe, prolonged recession are fading.
more »