Blockchain and RFID Could Address a $180 Billion Problem

A new paper published by the Auburn University RFID Lab suggests two technologies could help retailers, brand owners and logistics providers. Blockchain and RFID could help reduce counterfeiting, which costs retailers and brand owners approximately $98 billion annually, by enabling partners to look up information about specific items and determine whether they are genuine or counterfeit. Chain of custody is established so gray-market diversions could be addressed more effectively. Companies could view when an item left the legitimate supply chain and was diverted into the gray market. Blockchain and RFID could also help companies identify where shrink (a $47 billion problem) is occurring. For example, if RFID-tagged items were read as they entered a warehouse, but were never read leaving the warehouse, that data would be easy to find by examining the blockchain entries.