Spy in the bin

Much ado via big brother watch http://www.bigbrotherwatch.org.uk/ about 2 million households in the UK having microchips in their bins. Not sure but it sounds like RFID to me.. basically the system reads the bin ID when being loaded into the rubbish truck- and hence can work out your waste weight and lead to "pay as you throw". http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8550929.stm
maybe less concerned.
There does seem to be some exaggeration, the bins can't really tell if you are putting recyclicables in the normal bin and you can always put things in next doors bin. We pay for water on this basis, why not other services ?

RFID for mobile e-health for women

Somwhat of a bizzare title but reflecting the topic of a talk I'm giving at an APEC workshop. anyway news from RFID journal of a public health initiative in Dundee. Basically, Pregnant women have an ID card that gives access to welfare services. If they agree they go on a programme (Dundee Healthy Living Initiative) that measures CO in their breath, and hopefully identifies whether they have been smoking or not - this is a well-known technique . If not, they get vouchers for ASDA (a british supermarket). Apart from the obviuos joke potential, this is interesting in terms of the idea of attaching data to people, and the notion of being paid for loss of privacy. This sort of approach has been suggested in terms of internet search records, and of course happens every day with supermarket loyalty cards etc.