Sigfox’s IoT network is powering a new, smart tag that aims to give tobacco retailers are new defence against crime. As part of the ‘Calumet’ project, the operator has teamed up with connected objects specialist Follower Product (FP) and Philip Morris France to test the smart tag in a six-month pilot approved by the Ministry of the Interior. The three partners are now expanding the project, having secured financial backing from French customs authorities.

A first phase of the deployment will see 600 tobacco retailers in the Bouches-du-Rhone department adopt the smart tags, with a national roll-out planned at a later stage.

The ‘Calumet’ tag is designed to use the Sigfox network, but is also compatible with GSM connectivity. During the six-month pilot, it was integrated into cartons of dummy cigarettes delivered to participating retailers. Its main aim is to alert security forces in case of theft and enable them to track stolen merchandise. It is also able to detect vibrations related to a fire in a tobacco store, triggering an emergency response.