GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS
As is often the case with emerging technologies, the adoption rate of NFC in
the United States has been low. As of this writing, few devices on the market
have NFC chips. However, the number of NFC-enabled devices continues to
grow. An estimated 285 million NFC-enabled devices will be shipped in
2013, including both cellular handsets and other consumer electronics, with
the number in circulation reaching 1.95 billion by 2017.28 Another challenge
with the adoption and investigation into NFC is that the market and standards
are currently fragmented. The introduction of services, like mobile
wallets, is being hampered by vendors offering NFC solutions with different
architectures. This fragmentation may have been the reason that Apple chose
not to include NFC in the iPhone 5. Instead, Apple will forge its own path
with the launch of Passbook, which is not NFC-based, in the release of iOS
6. PayPal, which had been experimenting with NFC, ditched their research
into the technology when it launched its in-store mobile payment app that
only requires users to type in a PIN to access their PayPal accounts. There
will eventually come a point at which the fragmented environment will
consolidate.
As with all wireless transfer solutions, security and privacy issues also
exist with NFC. While the proximity between NFC reader and tag provides
some level of protection, the use of PIN codes and methods of disabling
chips can provide an additional level of security. Still, even the U.S.
Department of State recommends using an RF blocking material when
traveling with their e-Passports.29 The reality is that no security model or
solution can currently overcome these problems. Protecting the customers
and reducing their risk and exposure requires either assuming the risk or by
utilizing solutions like real-time fraud prevention similar to what financial
institutions and credit-card companies deploy. Similarly, a virus can theoretically
broadcast itself utilizing a wireless data transfer protocol. One such
scenario might include a virus that utilizes vulnerabilities in the NFC software
on the wireless device or a service related to the communication protocol.
Once another system accepts this transmission it could transfer control of the
application and data.
While a library’s decision to allocate resources to building and supporting
NFC-based services will be partly based on the number of customers
owning devices that can use the technology, it will be largely
dependent on the availability of pilot projects that demonstrate the potential
of the technology and positive return on investment. In the end, the
implementation of NFC in libraries requires librarians to be willing to
research and deploy pilot projects and share their knowledge and experiences
in order to help the library community understand the potential of
NFC technology