The History of Tracking Devices
Two major advances in the 20th century now provide endless opportunities for us to monitor our possessions and family members. GPS technology spearheaded by the U.S. government now allows people to track cell phones and vehicles anywhere they may travel. In addition, radio-frequency identifications allow products to be inventoried from warehouse to shopping cart--and beyond.
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GPS Technology
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According to GPS.gov, the United States owns and operates the nation's free-to-use GPS system. Other countries operate their own networks. The technology was developed in the years leading up to the end of the Cold War in the 1980s as part of a satellite-based missile system. Along the way, the private sector has used the system to advance numerous helpful civilian applications--from people-tracking applications on your cell phone to navigation systems that tell you exactly how to get just about anywhere.
RFID Technology
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Radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology began to be noticed commercially in the early 1970s, when a machine designed by Mario Cardullo began tracking toll data in New York City. This led the way to major developments in product inventory tracking and marketing, personal, investment and business banking and record-keeping from libraries to zoos.
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Controversy
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One development in the 21st century, an advancement from early RFID animal tags, is human tagging, which allows a person to be identified by the tag's unique identification code. According to the Reuters Blog, however, a team of scientists proved that an implanted RFID tag can be cloned to deceive detection devices and gain the wrong person access to secure information or locations.
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