GSN March 2016 Digital Edition

Convy on Netcentric Security
RFID Technology: Mustering up
better incident response
By John Convy, Convy Associates, Washington, DC
Radio-Frequency Identification
in the commercial sector, proving an
invaluable tool for retailers against
loss prevention and for inventory
previously limited to
tracking cattle, could
be used to protect government
assets and
personnel in the event
of an emergency?
It turns out, this can
be done!
The progress in
RFID technology has made it more
accessible and prominent, and has
reduced costs for widespread use
among cost-conscious organizations
and agencies that might benefit from
it. Active, semi-passive, and passive
RFID tags are less expensive to produce
than in the past, and can now
be made small enough to fit in virtually
any device or product.
The federal government has already
implemented RFID technology
in numerous ways, partly in
response to the September 11 attacks.
For example, the Department
of State is now issuing e-passports,
embedded with RFID chips that act
as a biometric identifier, making the
passport impossible to forge. Also,
the government’s “Real ID” program
has seen many states adopting
In the event of an evacuation, managers
can quickly account for all employees, and
alert authorities to any discrepancies in
their locations.
driver’s license chipping to improve
identification monitoring at border
crossings and federal facilities.
In the security sector, RFID technology
is making significant strides
in how organizations view and execute
personnel management, particularly
in the event of a crisis or
incident. I recently spoke with Steve
His Arizona-based company’s asset
tracking solutions are helping address
critical security threats to highvalue
facilities, such as military bases,
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weapons facilities, airports, seaports,
and other critical infrastructure.
RTS is using integrated Active
RFID, coupled with remote data
servers and strategically placed badge
readers or “muster points” on the exterior
of buildings, and
“inventory points” on
the interior, that enable
real-time tracking
and inventory of
personnel. These solutions
represent an opportunity
for agencies
cient
at protecting both infrastructure
and personnel.
lution
is designed by implementing
an “Employee Muster System,” where
nondescript reader boxes or muster
points are installed around the
perimeter of a building or campus,
and employees are given wearable
RFID badges, which communicate
with the muster points to track, in
real-time, the locations of personnel
on campus. This information is then
relayed to an off-site Remote Data
Server where the software checks the