The global standards body said the new group will focus on four key areas: cybersecurity, regulatory compliance, validation of emerging use cases, and interoperability standards. Its work will span applications in medical devices, pharmaceutical packaging, and broader healthcare delivery systems.

Stefan Genser, Director of Sales at Identiv, has been named chair of the Healthcare SIG. Mike McCamon, Executive Director of the NFC Forum, will also play a central role in guiding the group’s direction. The SIG’s board includes some of the biggest names in tech and NFC development, with Apple, Google, Huawei, Identiv, Infineon, NuCurrent, NXP Semiconductors, Sony, and ST Microelectronics all represented.

McCamon said that global standardization is “vital to deliver patient safety and enhance user experiences as healthcare NFC adoption accelerates.” It is a sentiment that reflects the growing role NFC is playing in hospital settings, clinical trials, and supply chain verification for medications.

Genser added that the SIG plans to “leverage member expertise to standardize NFC’s role in healthcare while fostering cross-industry collaboration for improved patient and provider outcomes.” The emphasis on collaboration suggests the group intends to bring together device manufacturers, software developers, and healthcare providers to solve practical implementation challenges.

NFC technology has been gaining traction in healthcare for several years now. Tap-to-pair connections for medical devices, tamper-evident pharmaceutical packaging, and patient identification wristbands are all areas where the technology has found a foothold. But adoption has often been piecemeal, with individual companies developing proprietary solutions rather than working to shared standards.

The formation of a dedicated SIG signals that the NFC Forum sees healthcare as a sector where coordinated standards development could unlock significant growth. By bringing major chipmakers, device manufacturers, and platform companies together under one roof, the group aims to create a more unified framework for NFC in clinical and pharmaceutical settings.

An introductory webinar on NFC in healthcare was scheduled for June 16, 2026, and the NFC Forum has invited interested organizations to get involved in the SIG’s ongoing work.

Read more at https://nfc-forum.org/news/2026-05-nfc-forum-launches-healthcare-special-interest-group/

The post NFC Forum Launches Healthcare Special Interest Group first appeared on RFID News.

Announced from London on 18 May 2026, the new group will work to promote the safe and effective deployment of NFC technologies within healthcare, targeting applications that include medical devices, pharmaceutical packaging, and healthcare delivery systems.

Mike McCamon, Executive Director of the NFC Forum, highlighted the growing momentum behind NFC adoption in healthcare and pharma, noting that global standardization is now essential to protect patient safety and improve user experiences. McCamon emphasized that leveraging existing NFC Forum Standards while adapting specifications for healthcare-specific requirements will be central to the group’s mission, enabling reliable and secure device-to-device connections that align with national and international regulations.

The SIG will focus on several critical areas of NFC enablement in healthcare. These include cybersecurity and regulatory alignment, the creation and validation of new NFC use cases, and defining the technical foundations for interoperability across the broader NFC Forum ecosystem.

Stefan Genser, who chairs the NFC Forum Healthcare Working Group and serves as Sales Director for RFID/Transponder Solutions EMEA at Identiv, said the group will draw on the collective expertise of Forum members to standardize and strengthen NFC’s role in the sector. He pointed to cross-industry collaboration as a key driver, with the aim of delivering practical solutions that result in better outcomes for patients and healthcare providers alike.

The NFC Forum’s Board includes representatives from major technology companies such as Apple, Google, Huawei, Identiv, Infineon, NuCurrent, NXP Semiconductors, Sony, and ST Microelectronics. Together, they work to enable seamless and secure contactless interactions on a global scale.

A webinar exploring healthcare solutions using NFC is scheduled for 16 June 2026. The session, running from 9:00 AM to 9:50 AM ET, will feature McCamon and Genser as speakers. Topics will cover secure access to medical information, verification of medications and consumables, supply-chain safety, and interoperability from pharmacies through to home care environments.

The formation of this SIG signals a significant step forward for NFC technology in healthcare, where the need for trusted, interoperable connectivity between devices, systems, and stakeholders continues to grow.

Read more at https://nfc-forum.org/events/healthcare-solutions-using-nfc/?utm_campaign=healthcare_miniseries&utm_source=pr&utm_medium=news_release&utm_content=Healthcare_SIG

The post NFC Forum Launches Healthcare Special Interest Group first appeared on RFID News.

“Marks that simply indicate the existence of a technology are not sufficient for NFC. To be successful, we must guide users to a tapping location,” the NFC Forum said in its announcement.

The Wayfinding System comprises four distinct variations, each tailored to different use cases and levels of user familiarity with NFC technology.

The Directional variation is aimed at tags and occasionally used devices, providing clear guidance to the precise location of the NFC antenna. This is the most explicit of the four options and is best suited to scenarios where users may not instinctively know where to tap.

The Simplified variation strips back the visual cues for everyday use cases where consumers are already comfortable with contactless interactions. However, the NFC Forum cautions that adopters should think carefully before choosing this option, as it offers “significantly less wayfinding guidance” and could confuse less experienced users.

A dedicated Charging variation confirms NFC charging functionality and highlights the antenna location. This mark is reserved exclusively for charging applications and should not be used in other contexts.

Finally, the Instructional variations serve as complementary marks for situations where user awareness of NFC is assumed to be low. These provide the most literal visual guidance, illustrating the action of tapping a mobile device to establish a connection.

All four variations can be displayed in sizes ranging from 5mm to 14mm and above, with multiple colour options available. The NFC Forum says this gives “designers and product manufacturers flexibility while enhancing those brands that integrate contactless connections in their consumer journey.”

The introduction of a standardised wayfinding system could prove significant for the broader adoption of NFC technology. As tap-based interactions become increasingly common in retail, transport, access control and smart packaging, a consistent visual language will help reduce friction and build consumer confidence.

The NFC Forum’s approach recognises that the success of any contactless technology depends not just on the hardware, but on how clearly users understand the interaction. By offering a scalable system with options for varying levels of user sophistication, the Wayfinding Mark is positioned to become a familiar sight on NFC-connected products worldwide.

The post NFC Forum unveils Wayfinding Mark as global identifier for NFC tapping locations first appeared on RFID News.

The two newly adopted standards are the NFC Wireless Charging (NFC WLC) Specification, now designated IEC 63652-1:2026, and the NFC Data Exchange Format (NDEF) Technical Specification, now designated IEC 63652-2:2026.

The NFC WLC specification standardizes wireless charging for small, battery-powered devices using existing NFC communication interfaces. It targets low-power devices operating below 3W and is already in use across more than 100 million devices worldwide. These include wireless earbuds, smart glasses, digital stylus pens, headsets, and fitness trackers. Notably, it is the only IEC-recognized standard that specifically addresses the charging needs of low-power devices.

The NDEF Technical Specification defines a common data format used by NFC Forum-compliant devices and tags. It standardizes how data records are structured, exchanged, and interpreted. Working alongside the WLC specification, NDEF allows devices to safely exchange the setup information needed during wireless charging sessions.

Mike McCamon, Executive Director of the NFC Forum, said the formal adoption by the IEC brings added confidence to businesses looking to integrate NFC technology into their products and services.

The IEC endorsement also carries regulatory significance. It enables alignment with key European directives, including the EU Common Charging Directive and the EU Digital Product Passport initiatives. Both directives are expected to shape the future of consumer electronics and product traceability across the region.

For manufacturers and developers working with NFC-enabled devices, having globally recognized IEC standards simplifies compliance and reduces fragmentation. It also signals to the broader market that NFC wireless charging and data exchange protocols have reached a level of maturity and reliability suitable for widespread deployment.

With NFC technology already embedded in billions of smartphones and an expanding range of wearables and IoT devices, the formal standardization of these two specifications is likely to accelerate adoption even further in the years ahead.

Read more at https://nfc-forum.org/news/2026-03-two-nfc-forum-specifications-adopted-as-iec-standards/

The post Two NFC Forum Specifications Adopted as IEC Standards first appeared on RFID News.

Under the CR15 test programme, device manufacturers, reader and tag-makers, and other stakeholders are able to validate conformance of generic device classes (mobile, reader, card emulation, universal devices) to the new “OV20” operating volume. This builds on the previously certified “OV5” baseline, thereby ensuring backward compatibility with existing devices while establishing a new performance baseline for contactless operations.

At a personal level, the move has clear implications for user experience. By allowing NFC-certified devices to work at a distance of up to 20 mm (approx. 0.8 inches) instead of the earlier 5 mm or so, alignment precision becomes significantly less critical, making interactions smoother, faster and more reliable. For sectors such as access control, automotive digital keys, wearables, transit ticketing and smart home applications, this enhanced range opens up new possibilities. As the Forum notes, “using your mobile phone as a digital key to unlock your car, or a smartwatch as your transport ticket” becomes more practical with the extended range.

From an industry perspective, the NFC Forum is backed by a roster of major technology companies (including Apple Inc., Google LLC, Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd., NXP Semiconductors N.V., Sony Group Corporation, STMicroelectronics N.V. and others) which lends strong credibility and industry momentum to the rollout of this certification regime.

For device makers and system integrators, the key takeaway is that CR15 provides a mark of trust and compliance. Once a product has successfully undergone the CR15 testing process, it may bear the NFC Forum Certified mark and thereby signal to relying parties (e.g., OEMs, service providers, transit operators, automotive manufacturers) that the device will behave reliably within the extended read-range environment. This is important for establishing interoperability, user confidence and consistent experience across ecosystems.

There are also broader market implications. By increasing the certified range for NFC interactions, the technology becomes more capable for next-generation use cases which demand less precise positioning and faster recognition. For example, wearables like smartwatches or rings, where physical alignment may be more challenging; or automotive applications where the device may not be placed exactly at a tag location but still needs to trigger reliably; or transit gates where speed and throughput are critical. The extended range helps accelerate NFC’s competitiveness against other proximity technologies. The NFC Forum note that they are “providing a platform for fellow industry consortiums to build on, notably the Intelligent Car Connectivity Ecosystem Alliance (ICCE) in its mission to create an enhanced digital car key that guarantees a reliable connection”.

From the standpoint of the hospitality and logistics sectors (areas of interest for our business), the implications are also significant. The improved read-range means that tags embedded in assets, such as smart luggage, hotel room access keys, conference badges or touring-caravan systems (as an example rather than digital keys) can be read more reliably and without the end-user needing to place the device with pinpoint precision. This improves usability, reduces customer friction and supports wider adoption of NFC in asset tracking, guest engagement (via NFC taps), and smart-environment interactions.

However, there are some practical considerations. Firstly, manufacturers must achieve CR15 certification which involves testing to the updated specification. Secondly, it remains to be seen how quickly the ecosystem (tag makers, reader modules, device OEMs) will adopt the new standard and transition from older certified ranges. Thirdly, while 20 mm is the certified baseline, real-world performance will also depend on device hardware, tag design, environmental factors (metal, orientation, interference), and regulatory constraints. Lastly, while the new standard is backward compatible, it remains to be confirmed how older deployed infrastructure will interoperate seamlessly in upgraded environments.

In conclusion, the NFC Forum’s launch of Certification Release 15 is a strong signal that NFC technology is evolving to meet higher usability, reliability and range requirements. For organisations developing contactless solutions—whether in automotive, hospitality, transit, IoT, asset tracking or access control—this development warrants attention. The extended read-range opens new use-case potential while maintaining the established interoperability and standards compliance that the NFC Forum has championed. With CR15 now available, device makers and system integrators have a clear roadmap for deploying next-generation NFC interactions that deliver a superior user experience.

Read more about this on NFC Forums news feed

The post NFC Forum launches certification to support extended range of contactless connections first appeared on RFID News.

Mike McCamon, the executive director of the NFC forum said that NFC Forum Certification demonstrates to customers, consumers and partners that a company values product quality and improving the customer experience.

Socket Mobile claim that the S550 is built for painless integration into apps and fact that the device is now Apple Pay, Google Pay and NFC Forum certified means that it is the idea reader for many loyalty, closed loop payment systems, age verification or vaccine passport systems. Their aim has been to remove complexity for application developers allowing third parties to take advantage of the customer experience that the certifications bring.

Achieving NFC Forum certification is a key milestone in the NFC journey, as it guarantees reader/tag compatibility in a highly secure but complex NFC ecosystem. The combination of Socket’s NFC hardware and CaptureSDK tools, enables our application partners to avoid the complexity and focus on using NFC data to enhance their application. Our application partners will now have the ability to support a host of NFC centric interactions, such as the tap of a phone with a mobile driver’s license for fast, simple and secure electronic age verification, replacing the time consuming and unreliable visual verification system mostly used today

Dave Holmes, Chief Business Officer at Socket Mobile

Send us your News

If you have a story you think we would be interested in relating to RFID. A product launch, a new RFID technology or a successful RFID implementation project, please do not hesitate to send us your press release.

The post Socket Mobile S550 reader receives NFC forum certification first appeared on RFID News.