IBM has a new solution to solve the issue of consumer privacy when it comes to item-level tags. The solution? Clippable tags.

Clippable RFID tags would allow the tag to be disabled at the point of sale. Clippable tags let the retailer get the benefit of tracking the item, but give the consumer privacy once the consumer buys the item. IBM's solution is touted as being superior to "kill commands."

The Extreme Retail 23 newsletter describes clippable tags (requires free registration):

Currently, RFID tags are embedded with a deactivation process known as the "kill command." This is executed by an RFID reader at the point of purchase, and renders the tag null and void. There are weaknesses in this process, however.

For instance, once the "kill command" is executed there can be no going back, even if it includes a post-sale benefit for the consumer. Also, there is no visual proof to the consumer that the kill command has, in fact, been executed. IBM's solution to this quandary is called the "clipped tag," a process performed manually by the consumer.

The clipped tag is offered in three basic varieties -- scratch-off, perforated and peel-off. The first method would require consumers to scratch off a portion of the tag with a coin or fingernail at which point, according to the report, "the tag is open for visual confirmation that the tag has been deactivated." Furthermore, the process is reversible. "Subsequent communication with the tag may be made using mechanical probes to contact the antenna stubs," says the report.

The second method is for the tag to be manufactured with a line of tiny holes (or perforation) -- like a postage stamp -- that easily can be detached at the point of sale. A pull tab may be used to effortlessly facilitate the separation.

The third method calls for the RFID antenna to be sandwiched between two layers of packaging material. The lower half of the tag is affixed with adhesive. A pull-tab on the top half facilitates the process, effectively tearing the tag in half and deactivating the antenna.

While the tags can be restored with all three methods, doing so would require a conscious effort on the part of the owner of the item, thus ensuring that person's security.