Introduction
An event management system or software helps organizations plan, execute and report on events for the success of their business. Event organizers create these systems to monitor the events’ progress, improve their service delivery, and correct the noted flaws. They improve with technological advancement, meaning that event organizers must upgrade their software to maximize their functioning. Examples of this software include Eventbrite, Ticket Tailor, Cvent, and Eventzilla. These are mainly used for registration and ticket processes. Data from the software is collected and saved online. Organizations can capture a wide range of information from the software. For instance, Ticket Tailor is an app that people use to buy tickets online and give their feedback and complaints.
Due to advancements in tecnology, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is an intelligent system that was innovated as the latest event management system. It is a tag attached to objects, such as wristwatches, with information about a specific individual for identification. It is worn at the wrist, just like any other event ticket. They are electronically charged and scanned using smartphones. Critical information such as credit card and bank account numbers are copied in the tag, and it only needs one to swipe to use it (Bennett, 2013). Except these are electronic and can collect information and pay for expenses inside the events. Event organizers have swiftly diverted to using the RFID due to its easier accessibility and user-friendly usage.
However, anything mediated has its downsides, especially when it involves uploading massive amounts of information about individuals into the organizational database. RFID involves tracking individuals’ movements and payments, which makes it vulnerable for their data to be accessed by third parties, popularly known as hackers (Van Winkle, 2022). Even though the tag is built with unhackable encryption, there must be a possibility of viruses, reverse engineering, or a cyber-attack. In today’s world, anything connected to the internet is prone to cyber-attacks, including the Radio Frequency Identification system (Bennet, 2013). People can access information, for instance, locations, residential areas, and the individuals’ credit card and bank account details using the interface (Corporate Finance Institute, 20220. Technological systems reduce the risks of human errors in the organization.
The Head of Marketing Media, Resort Operations, and The Head of Corporate Information Technology of the Resort Operations at Padgett-Beale, Inc. believe that the organization needs the Radio Frequency Identification system (Bennett, 2013). The system’s main advantage is that the organization has broad exposure to information, such as the preferences of the customers, where they can use the information to improve their event experience (De Groot, 2022) The interface also reduces the number of infrastructures that the personnel have to monitor directly since it can be set to operate automatically (Allen et al., 2022). The information collected is accurate, as well as the payments made. The system also guarantees the safety of the participants on the event grounds since the tags can then be tracked to the last known location of an individual.
Analysis Section
Chosen Use Case
Managing adult attendees at music festivals is the use of the RFID bands, which this paper focuses on. Adults are more likely to collect much information in music festivals and concerts than children who collect less. Adults can spend money from their accounts and credit cards to buy tickets, food, and drinks and pay for other events (Van Winkle, 2022). They are also more capable of expressing their preferences, which is permanent, than children, who provide substantial data variations. Therefore, RFID tags are more beneficial to the organization when used by adults due to the wide range of uses. Regardless, anyone in an event can get an RFID wristband, which would provide information from people of all ages.
Information Collected from the RFID system
The information that can be collected from the RFID system from adults in music festivals is financial, taste, and preferences of drinks and meals, their exact location, the participant’s demographics, and their expenditure. The financial information accessed is bank account numbers and balances, credit card pins, and the amount they are willing to spend on a particular festival (Van Winkle, 2022). The tastes and preferences of drinks and meals are obtained from the varieties or combinations the participants paid for. It is also easy to track a pattern using the previous information from earlier festivals.
The RFID can tell the participant’s location, including where they could be found, and predictions of their next move (Allen et al., 2013). The participant’s demographics are interpreted from their patterns and behavior during the festivals. Their expenditure is obtained by the total payments made during a particular event (Steele, 2022). This information is collected, stored, processed, and transmitted to assist the organization in improving future events.
Compliance Issues
Compliance issues related to using RFID bands to make and track mobile purchases include corruption and illegal practices, privacy breaches, process risks, workplace safety, and environmental concerns. Since the financial information is linked to the RFID bands, it is easier for the organization to go through a breach in the system (Bennett, 2013). Corruption is associated with laundering money from the participants or the organization through loopholes in the interface (Ecommerce Guide). Privacy breaches are the risk of the participant’s personal information, such as social security numbers, residents of the participants, and other details falling into the wrong hands (Allen et al., 2022). They are always associated with cyber-attacks and the malicious spread of unwanted elements in the software. It poses a threat to the participant’s information being exposed and endangering their lives and assets.
Since the RFID interface has a lot of critics and issues, it might lead to it being shut down for security purposes. Therefore, the process risks are associated with the organization using the wrong and risky ways to pass the usage of the system (Token RFID). It depends on the authenticity of the license and other government regularities. It also depends on whether the interface provides a good and safe environment for the employees (Allen et al., 2022). It is not the participant’s information in the system but the employee’s and the staff’s. Therefore, they should be assured that the use of the interface does not have any other effects, primarily on employee performance in the organization.
Another compliance issue involved environmental hazards posed by the use of the interface. RFID poses security threats not only to the participants but also to the community at large. For instance, when a third party is exposed to that wide range of information, the interface is insecure (Bennett, 2013). The public must be convinced to give in to using a system that they can trust. If the bands are disposable, the organization should ensure the people that they shall not pose any environmental hazards, such as the emission of dangerous gas by the tags or environmental cleanliness (Allen et al., 2022). The use of any interface might cause insecurity in the area. Therefore, strategies should be laid out to ensure that the participant’s information and their lives are safe.
Privacy and Security Issues
The main security concern associated with the RFID system of events management is duplication of the interface. It would be challenging for the customer to know the original and duplicated ones. Individuals or hackers might create a duplicate system for malicious purposes to scam unsuspected adults from music festivals (Allen et al., 2022). Therefore, the uncertainty that the RFID bands are being used can cause panic and distrust from the customers since it would pose a danger to the participants (Square). Hackers use malicious bands to obtain information from the individual. When they get a hold of crucial information, the security of the customer is compromised.
Another privacy issue is tracking the customer’s location. Since the bands can serve as trackers, a hacker can track a certain person with it. This exposes their location which threatens their safety (Tappit). The hacker can use information obtained from the band such as the bank accounts credit and debit cards in to coerce the user into doing their bidding.
RFID tags are vulnerable to manipulation by cyber attackers. This can be done through the study of their power consumption. During the upgrade of the tags, the cyber attackers hijack the process and gains access to the tag’s upgrade process. It also assists them in carrying out time-based attacks when the encryptions are down (Van Winkle, 2022). It comes after a keen study of the patterns of RFID tags. The organization might avail them to the participants in the events without knowing that their functionality has been altered (Oracle). The hackers are then granted access to tons of information and the organization’s servers and database.
Not all organizations have the secure network systems required to ensure that data from the RFID bands are specific. Cyber attackers can use these poor encryptions and networks to access the organization’s cloud (Bennett, 2013). Therefore, if the organization’s web is not secure, it can threaten the participant’s information. The attackers can also record the signals sent from the participant’s band to the organization’s server. It would help them study the movement and be able to hijack it when it is sent again (Bennet, 2013). If the organization has different variables of the signals transmitted so that no password is sent twice, it can also be a security threat.
The virus is considered a future security threat to RFID tags. Anyone possessing an RFID tag can plant a virus, which is more effective due to the insecure network and low storage of the tags. This virus makes it possible for it to be read by a third party (Van Winkle, 2022). They can also access the organization’s system, depriving them of valuable data. It is easy to plant a virus in the tag since any adult entering the festival can use it, and the information can be transmitted to the same server. This also makes it possible for the virus to spread faster.
Laws Affecting the Implementation of the RFID System
Many countries outside America still need to pass laws that govern the usage and implementation of RFID tags. However, there are electronic bills passed by the American government to control the use of tags. New Hampshire’s House of Representatives passed laws that dictated that organizations minimize using RFID and other tracking systems (Allen et al., 202). Michigan imposed a certain fee on organizations intending to use the RFID system, discouraging people from implementing the software (Bennet, 2013). The United States enacted the law to scan everything with tags, such as wristbands, as well as the imposition of bar codes.
Recommendations
The organization should conduct background research on the people possessing the RFID wristbands to determine whether they have hacker histories or pose any harm. This would assist them in being aware of their customers (Inc.com). They should also carry out their processes, such as registration and ticketing through the tags, in a secure network to keep the information from being prone to cyber-attack (Allen et al., 2022). The organization should also pass policies protecting the accessibility of the tags and information, such as laws against corruption in the organization, wrongful use of the participant’s knowledge, and money laundering. They should establish the consequences of these actions.
The organization should also endeavor to improve the technology, which will pave the way to a more secure form of using the tags. With its technological advances, an organization would be open to modifying tags with more security protocols (Van Winkle, 2022). The organization should restrict the number of employees who have access to the information gained from the participants. They should also employ experienced and trustworthy employees who can handle that much information without taking advantage of the access (Van Winkle, 2022).
Conclusion
Adults give a wide range of information that can be helpful to the organization. They use this information to improve the failed areas and maintain certain practices according to the participant’s tastes and preferences. For instance, if there were more soda purchases than water at a music festival, the event organizers would conclude that the audience prefers soda to water. The bands worn by parents can be connected to their children’s in the event, which might help track them down if they got lost. All information is directed to a secure database. The organization has access to this and other ranges of information. This explains why the IT governance board should consider the following recommendations for the safety of the data: they should establish restrictions to information, carry out a background check on participants of the festival, ensure a secure network around the organization, pass policies to govern the protection of the information, advance technologically and improve security protocols of the data. They should also upgrade the bands from time to time, which is equivalent to rewriting encryptions which makes it impossible for the hackers to interfere.
References
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