Another way to lose your identity

I caught a segment on the news this past weekend about our credit cards and how easily they could be read while in your purse or pocket.  “How?” you might ask.
Many new credit cards come issued with radio sensors in them.  The cards look the same except they feature an icon of a call receiver at the bottom right hand corner.
Anyone with a hand held scanner (an example they showed on the news looked like a notepad) can walk up next to you, scan your purse or pockets and transmit your card number to their computer without you knowing it.
If this is the case, why create a bigger headache for us to protect our identity with this type of credit card?