Department Of State Uses RFID Asset Tracking Solution

  • Oct 15, 2009

The Department of State is tagging 10,000 mission critical IT assets with passive RFID to save money, increase security and reduce administrative burden.

The State Department chose ODIN to provide a turn-key IT Asset tracking solution. ODIN’s packaged solution is secure, faster to deploy and drives a quicker ROI than integrating separate RFID products or using bar code technology.

The State Department’s IT Asset system, based on RFID, is part of a growing trend within the federal government to leverage RFID 2.0, the latest in transformational technology. RFID 2.0 is passive RFID technology that is gaining widespread adoption mainly because costs have declined significantly, performance has improved dramatically in the past 12 months, and a global ISO standard has stabilized.

“The State Department is using RFID technology to save taxpayers money by dramatically reducing administrative burden,” said ODIN’s founder Patrick J. Sweeney II. “The added security of having RFID-tagged assets will keep sensitive information where it belongs. After all, no federal agency wants to find itself on the front page of the Washington Post.”

Initially the State Department started with a trial of the technology to ensure that the business process within their agency would benefit from RFID. Once the technology was proven, they decided to start an agency-wide program by tagging 10,000 critical assets with UHF Gen 2.0 passive RFID tags. The tags are based on the same standard in use by the Department of Defense and other federal agencies.

“There were many choices of RFID components, but only one or two solutions providers with deep expertise and a complete physics-to-software solution. We chose ODIN because they've completed hundreds of successful RFID projects and have a heritage in RFID physics going back to MIT,” said Kirk Ingvoldstad at the Department of State. “After using barcode and thousands of labor hours to track assets for the past 20 years, it is well past time for a new technology. Passive RFID from ODIN was the right choice for a higher level of security and cost savings.”

Featured

  • Security Today Announces 2025 CyberSecured Award Winners

    Security Today is pleased to announce the 2025 CyberSecured Awards winners. Sixteen companies are being recognized this year for their network products and other cybersecurity initiatives that secure our world today. Read Now

  • Empowering and Securing a Mobile Workforce

    What happens when technology lets you work anywhere – but exposes you to security threats everywhere? This is the reality of modern work. No longer tethered to desks, work happens everywhere – in the office, from home, on the road, and in countless locations in between. Read Now

  • TSA Introduces New $45 Fee Option for Travelers Without REAL ID Starting February 1

    The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced today that it will refer all passengers who do not present an acceptable form of ID and still want to fly an option to pay a $45 fee to use a modernized alternative identity verification system, TSA Confirm.ID, to establish identity at security checkpoints beginning on February 1, 2026. Read Now

  • The Evolution of IP Camera Intelligence

    As the 30th anniversary of the IP camera approaches in 2026, it is worth reflecting on how far we have come. The first network camera, launched in 1996, delivered one frame every 17 seconds—not impressive by today’s standards, but groundbreaking at the time. It did something that no analog system could: transmit video over a standard IP network. Read Now

  • From Surveillance to Intelligence

    Years ago, it would have been significantly more expensive to run an analytic like that — requiring a custom-built solution with burdensome infrastructure demands — but modern edge devices have made it accessible to everyone. It also saves time, which is a critical factor if a missing child is involved. Video compression technology has played a critical role as well. Over the years, significant advancements have been made in video coding standards — including H.263, MPEG formats, and H.264—alongside compression optimization technologies developed by IP video manufacturers to improve efficiency without sacrificing quality. The open-source AV1 codec developed by the Alliance for Open Media—a consortium including Google, Netflix, Microsoft, Amazon and others — is already the preferred decoder for cloud-based applications, and is quickly becoming the standard for video compression of all types. Read Now

Most   Popular

New Products

  • PE80 Series

    PE80 Series by SARGENT / ED4000/PED5000 Series by Corbin Russwin

    ASSA ABLOY, a global leader in access solutions, has announced the launch of two next generation exit devices from long-standing leaders in the premium exit device market: the PE80 Series by SARGENT and the PED4000/PED5000 Series by Corbin Russwin. These new exit devices boast industry-first features that are specifically designed to provide enhanced safety, security and convenience, setting new standards for exit solutions. The SARGENT PE80 and Corbin Russwin PED4000/PED5000 Series exit devices are engineered to meet the ever-evolving needs of modern buildings. Featuring the high strength, security and durability that ASSA ABLOY is known for, the new exit devices deliver several innovative, industry-first features in addition to elegant design finishes for every opening.

  • Luma x20

    Luma x20

    Snap One has announced its popular Luma x20 family of surveillance products now offers even greater security and privacy for home and business owners across the globe by giving them full control over integrators’ system access to view live and recorded video. According to Snap One Product Manager Derek Webb, the new “customer handoff” feature provides enhanced user control after initial installation, allowing the owners to have total privacy while also making it easy to reinstate integrator access when maintenance or assistance is required. This new feature is now available to all Luma x20 users globally. “The Luma x20 family of surveillance solutions provides excellent image and audio capture, and with the new customer handoff feature, it now offers absolute privacy for camera feeds and recordings,” Webb said. “With notifications and integrator access controlled through the powerful OvrC remote system management platform, it’s easy for integrators to give their clients full control of their footage and then to get temporary access from the client for any troubleshooting needs.”

  • Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden Door Controls has relaunched its CV-7600 card readers in response to growing market demand for a more secure alternative to standard proximity credentials that can be easily cloned. CV-7600 readers support MIFARE DESFire EV1 & EV2 encryption technology credentials, making them virtually clone-proof and highly secure.