The Brazilian government has started on a plan that will require all cars to be fitted with tagging devices so that their locations can be monitored at all times. The move comes six years after the creation of the National System for Automatic Vehicle Identification (Siniav) and it should start rolling out next year.

Brazil wants to control and supervise traffic by means of real-time monitoring. It should be totally rolled out by June 30, 2014. The mechanism works from a radio frequency system, which provides for the issuance of signals by antennas scattered in cities and highways. These signals are picked up by a small chip that integrates the electronic board to be installed in the windshield of passenger vehicles and other specific locations, where motorcycles and trucks.

It is just an electronic tag that will allow control of real-time traffic. Upon being triggered, the chip sends the vehicle data to the antennas which in turn, will send the information to the central processing which will verify the situation of the vehicle analysed. The technology developed is quite complex and is a safe and inexpensive, it can be played.

It makes it a doddle to locate  a stolen car and associate it with the owner, facilitating recovery of the vehicle and avoiding cloning. It is also possible to monitor the average speed of cars and traffic in places and times when it is prohibited. Also it is possible to know if a car is licensed and taxed and up to date.

The downside is that the government will know where your car is at any time and can track you.  Of course a government would never misuse that information.