Don't be so quick to conclude that your people aren't doing any of this, though, as it extends way beyond rent-to-own. Many current - and many more future - devices will have technology that enables post-purchase information capture. For example, RFID tags that aren't disabled before the customer leaves the store might enable retailers, marketers or others to capture data from those devices without the consumer's knowledge or effective consent. Embedded NFC tags or other devices make it possible to track consumers wirelessly, even after they leave the store. Smart appliances can communicate with both the electrical grid and retail outlets, so the power company knows the toaster is making Pop-Tarts or the grocery store knows when that yogurt on the top shelf has gone bad.

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Keywords: retail supply chain, RFID, supply chain management IT, tracking consumers' behavior, monitoring post-store behavior of customers, electronics spying on consumers