Chiappa adding RFID chips to their guns

Scratch Chiappa (and any other manufacturer) off my list if they actually do end up producing all their guns with RFID chips.

so what.....

I don't see what the bIg deal is........because some hacker with a boat load of custom equipment and a pringles can-tenna might find out you have a gun from 300' away...?



I agree with chiappa....must be tinfoil time.

there was also a huge scare when they started putting chips in credit cards and passports......that 'hackers' were going to steal all your info, eat your babies, and run amok....

LOTS of manufacturers of LOTS of products use RFID chips to track materials and product through their manufacturing process.

They are NOT some sort of government plot.

They are NOT some sort of tracking device.


I guess now would be a good time to buy Alcoa stock.

http://www.chiappafirearms.com/contact-us

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Registered my displeasure with them... as follows.
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Good day Sir or Madam,

My wife has been asking for a Rhino since seeing the videos from SHOTshow earlier this year, however today I saw something rather disturbing. I'm sure you're getting a flood of mail now regarding the introduction of RFID chips to your products.

I'm no tinfoil hatter, But my early jobs in my youth were in electronic components. RFID does NOT have a short range, and the growing exploits by dishonest people who can afford $100 in parts make the addition of any such chips a serious impediment to purchasing anything including said devices.

Whilst in it's infancy, such products look like a dream come true for inventory control, most of us who carry concealed don't want our being armed broadcast to those of ill intent and some small measure of electronic knowledge. Such crimes are rapidly increasing in number here in the US, with people scanning Credit Cards simply by walking around with a reader for RFID.

Additionally, in many states, while we have Concealed and open carry laws... many jurisdictions do everything they can to make the actual carrying of Pistols as inconvenient, and legally painful as possble, including illegal and improper arrests... and threats of further legal action being dropped in exchange for not suing.

I shudder to think of being pinged by a passing officer for being a legal Concealed weapon carrier, and "investigated"

It is true that I am perfectly capable of disabling such a chip, should my wife come home with her Rhino, the point remains that most of us are deeply offended by the very suggestion of even the inclusion of such devices.

I wish you well, but understand... I will not be purchasing any of your products if this plan comes to fruition.

I am a Cowboy Action shooter, precisely your bread and butter.

Best wishes

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Oh and M-cameron... people ARE stealing CC info out of the air just walking around with RFID scanners. It's not tinfoil hattery, nor does it take a "lot" of equipment.

Even Mythbusters won't touch the topic with a 10 foot pole
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X034R3yzDhw&feature=related

Afterthought... chips have been read as far as several hundred yards away in some cases... Now lets say it's down to 20 feet. Tech-baddie sees you leave for the day and manages to get the ping from the RFID chipped guns in your house, from outside.

sounds like another Zumbo moment coming on....

but what the hey.... people forgave Ruger, so why not?

Not that I would ever consider buying their products because of this decision, but it is simple to defeat RFIDs by simply removing them, destroying them in place, or placing metal/metallic mylar stickers over them.

Oh and M-cameron... people ARE stealing CC info out of the air just walking around with RFID scanners. It's not tinfoil hattery, nor does it take a "lot" of equipment.

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yes, but not with anywhere near the frequency that people initially feared.....

also, i find it hard to believe that someone is going to roam around with an RFID scanner to find people who on the off chance happen to be carrying a Chiappa gun....

and if they do find you......what is it you think they are going to do...?

as for your comments about police.........you think they are going to start equipping police cars with RFID readers in hopes to find people with a gun that hopefully has an RFID chip...?



now if by some chance the Govt required that all guns be RFID chipped...then yes, i would disagree.......

but one manufacturer......i dont have a problem.

heck, Chiappa even said it themselves.......if after you get the gun....remove the chip if you want to......should be pretty simple to pop it off as its only hot glued it.

Most of you are missing the point. The RFID is a point of debate for sure, but the bigger issue is their horrible PR and disrespect towards potential customers.

The only copy of this release is in Italian (http://www.tiropratico.com/Cinzia_Pinzoni/RFID_chiappa.pdf), but multiple sources have apparently translated and commented.

So you're carrying a Rhino concealed with a chip on it. Your in the vicinity of a tech-wise individual with the electronic hardware capable to read the information on that tag. What's the worst that could happen?

M-Cameron
so what.....
I don't see what the bIg deal is........because some hacker with a boat load of custom equipment and a pringles can-tenna might find out you have a gun from 300' away...?

I agree with chiappa....must be tinfoil time.

there was also a huge scare when they started putting chips in credit cards and passports......that 'hackers' were going to steal all your info, eat your babies, and run amok....

Click to expand...

It may not be an issue now, but when some Congressman or Senator who wants to make a name for themselves propose that all firearms must have RFID, then it will be a problem because you in essence have registration warrant-less search capability. It'll be pretty easy with Chiappa demonstrating that it can be feasible.

As for the chips in the credit cards, crooks do lift info that way. It's just a lot more effective to steal credit card info by the tens of thousands via servers.

on the off chance happen to be carrying a Chiappa gun....

Click to expand...

Think longer term...

The only use of this technology is to violate my right to privacy.

Baby steps M-Cam. something seen as a "good idea" can spread like gangrene.

A lawsuit in the right place blaming the lack of a chip for a gun's illegal travels as a gang-banger gun could very well institute these sorts of practices industry wide. Imagine being charged with a felony for disabling the chip 10 years down the line.

And it's true, while not as pervasive as shoplifters, muggers, mail thieves... It's a growing industry, and as we adapt with our technology, such crimes will adapt as we do.

If you don't like it, pry the damned thing out. Sheesh.

How are these things being installed? Some RFID chips can be implanted in polymer frames as they are being molded. Kinda hard to simply pry them out if that is the case. While I know the Chiappa guns aren't polymer framed, doesn't mean that they don't put it someplace very difficult to access.

I'm not a fan of Chiappa guns anyway, so I won't be purchasing one, RFID chip or not.

Edit:
Read part of the article, found the answer.

RFID Removal: For those still concerned you can simply remove the grip and remove the hot glued RFID from the frame in the grip area when (over a year from now) these begin to appear. Others may prefer to wrap the revolver and their head in aluminum foil, curl in a ball and watch reruns of Mel Gibson's 1997 film, Conspiracy Theory. Well, that's a plan too!

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I work in Inventory Control, so RFID chips don't bother me. I'd rather not have them in my guns, but if the above proves true, then who cares. Maybe the ATF might learn a thing or two for 2 Fast 2 Furious.

Im thinking the end of my dremel-bit would fix that little chip IF i ever decide to buy anything from them,, The fact that it's there does somewhat perturb me though

Completely agree with Justin. They have made it reasonably clear in their press release that it is being used for inventory control and manufacturing. There's no guarantee that the chip will have any meaningful data present (i.e. serial number, type of firearm, etc.). It may just have a random number used in manufacturing to ensure QC.

Even if this becomes commonplace, I somehow really doubt somebody is going to be going around using RFID scanners to determine who is concealed carrying. I'm sorry, that sounds to me like a possible, but highly unlikely scenario.

That said, they also seem to be placing them in a reasonably easy to remove spot. It's one thing if embedded inside of a piece, but they're proposing putting them under the grip where removal is simple. It could make their job of manufacturing easier and better, which will trickle down to a better and cheaper product for you. What's your beef?

Couldn't you just stick the gun in the microwave for a little while and disable the chip anyway?

Mods, with greatest respect....

The time to complain and react to these sorts of things is BEFORE they become the norm.

Yes there is no overreaching conspiracy to drive vans up and down the street scanning for weapons, and matching those lists with registered owners.

Big Brother is not the one in our lives we typically have to worry about breaking into our homes at night and endangering those we love.

Lil' bastard however is the person we CCW for. and he's getting smarter every day.

Couldn't you just stick the gun in the microwave for a little while and disable the chip anyway?

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What are guns made of? Metal. Metal + Microwave = bad.

Couldn't you just stick the gun in the microwave for a little while and disable the chip anyway?

Click to expand...

The only time I've ever seen a metal item in a microwave wasn't pretty (well, actually, it was real pretty..!)

RFID chip or not, the ultimate point here is that Chiappa and their distributor has treated their consumer base like a bunch of morons over the issue. Morons they may be, but you don't tell the people who give you money that they are morons, despite how you truely feel about them.

Additional thought, if Inventory control is indeed their primary concern, I would have no issues if they heat-shrinked the chip externally to the barrel or grips. it's the inclusion INSIDE the gun that bothers me.