Few contemporary technologies raise as many security-related issues in the public consciousness as radio-frequency identification (RFID). Currently used in areas as diverse as commodity-chain management, building access, banking, livestock traceability, public transit and passports, RFID is promoted by government and industry as a reliable, efficient, convenient and secure communication technology. In contrast, mass media regularly report the relative ease with which signals can be boosted, viruses transmitted, databases hacked, privacies violated and freedoms denied. These kinds of utopian versus dystopian debates commonly accompany the introduction of new technologies, but rarely give people the conceptual and material tools needed to critically and creatively engage the social and cultural concerns at hand. By taking a closer look at some of the expectations, hopes and fears associated with RFID, this presentation aims to open new spaces of collaborative and collective action in the development and implementation of RFID and related technologies.