American passports get RFID

It never ceases to amaze me how low a standard American’s set for protection of their own privacy.

On Tuesday, the U.S. State Department issued a ruling that from October 2006, all Americans passports will carry embedded radio frequency identification (RFID) chips. This system has been highly criticized due to the ease with which potential criminals could potentially steal your personal information from a distance using RFID scanners.

However, personally the most disturbing aspect of this story is the way that the American media have ignored the issue. A quick search on Google News shows the story being carried in almost every country EXCEPT the US! I guess Americans are just too desensitized to their personal information being poorly protected :-(