The impact of RFID Security vulnerabilities on supply chain: Case Studies: RFID companies in Iran

Abstract: Every technology has advantages and disadvantages. RFID is a new technology when compared with other technologies like networking and telecommunication technologies and much more modern in Iran, with lots of unrevealed and not recognized features and applications. In business fields like supply chain the concerns of RFID security vulnerabilities, seem to be the reason for low rate of adaption. The current research is trying to create or suggest a theory or model to executives of RFID in Iran, in order to help the speed up and spread. The researcher investigated through commercial and technical companies involved with RFID technology and implementations in Iran. The current research is focused on the companies' projects which support vast variety of supply chains and is a qualitative research based on case studies. This survey gives a comparison with foreign RFID executives' experiences and concerns in order to find the common and differential points. It would be helpful in specifying the heaviest concern or concerns in a statistical comparison.
Here in the current research the area which the investigation is around it is the e-Commerce applications in the market place, which could be affected and become more efficient or accelerated by the use of wireless technology and devices generally, and RFID applications and accessories specifically. The attempt is towards finding and empirical test of a theoretical model aimed at explaining a comparison between security concerns to show the most important efficient one to be considered in the RFID context when implemented in supply chains.
In the literature review, the foreign concerns and issues were categorized in three, E-Commerce security, RFID security concepts and issues and RFID in supply chains. Then a conceptual framework was proposed to build links between a secure model of RFID (AIMS4MSD) and supply chains members also with the backbone network where the databases and servers were located. In the current explanatory research relationships are the impactsof RFID on supply chain and security features are variables. With an inductive approach the theory is built from samples and cases towards rules and laws. The current thesis is based on grounded theory and case studies as strategies to complete the research. And the author followed within case and cross case procedures to analyze the primary and secondary data gathered from foreign works and in-depth interviews organized and performed with seven (7) RFID companies in Iran as the research statistical society with a snowball sampling method.
At the end as the findings the research questions were answered and concluded that in order to benefit efficiently from RFID in supply chains it is needed to consider security concerns and standards and provide adequate trainings for users and staff concurrently. These would be helpful in recognizing the most effective vulnerabilities around RFID when being implemented in supply chains.