Law enforcement and homeland security officials may be interested in a new license plate technology called e-Plate which leverages RFID technology in order to track movements of automobiles. The e-Plate was developed by British firm Hills Numberplates. A single RFID reader can identify dozens of vehicles fitted with e-plates moving at any speed at a distance of about 100 yards. The e-plate looks just like a standard plate, but it contains an embedded chip that cannot be seen or removed. It is self-powered with a battery life of up to 10 years.

However, there have been privacy issues raised by both legal and privacy-rights groups. The fear is that authorities will be able to track individuals solely by the movement of their vehicles. One RFID expert mentioned that readers could be placed on cars parked at a mosque. That is too extreme of an example, IMHO, but it would make sense for governmental oversight to be applied in surveillance-type situations.