Raising the Bar for 'Fraudsters'

Smart labels make counterfeiting cost-prohibitive

RFID technology provides security and authentication in the supply chain for high-end designer-label product such as apparel, toiletries or accessories that confounds counterfeiters. With Texas Instruments’ (TI) RFID technology, protection does not have to carry a high price tag since ROI is sure to increase as forgeries currently making their way into the market decrease.

As a technology leader and innovator in RFID, TI has both leading-edge technology and trusted field experience to supply unique features to product authentication systems.

TI is the co-inventor of the smart label and has proven its performance as a trusted, reliable supplier of chips and RFID subsystems since 1989. The 2006 RFID Marketing Strategies Report, a survey of more than 550 end users, providers and prospects, ranked TI as #1 in thought leadership and as the most desired business partner.

As counterfeiting becomes more sophisticated, retailers are opting for electronic labels to secure their supply chain. These electronic labels require manufacturing capability beyond the reach of fraudsters and the addition of unique security features for good measure.

Smart labels are embedded in clothing and designer goods to provide authentication through the supply chain. They can also be embedded into items like printer ink cartridges to ensure that only the correct consumable replacements are used in equipment.

TI demonstrates its technology leadership and retail-savvy know how by offering three security capabilities:

• PKI encryption - Counterfeiting is a major concern in the pharmaceutical industry. Using PKI encryption, TI’s RFID chips can authenticate a package with only the encrypted information on the chip.
• Data Decommissioning - Sometimes it doesn’t make sense to render an RFID chip permanently inoperable . In these cases, before the tag is distributed, sensitive data can be decommissioned from the tag by persons with the proper security clearances.
• Factory-locked code - Because TI controls its entire manufacturing process, including chip and antenna, it can accommodate customized information to be securely embedded in the chip when specified by the user.