Sunday, March 19, 2006

RFID cloak


Mobile Cloak prevents 'eavesdropping' on RFID tags.

Why is it needed?:
RFID readers themselves can broadcast RFID tag data over long distances – often up to hundreds of meters away. It is difficult to shield the radio emissions of readers effectively without impeding their use. This means that an eavesdropper with an antenna and some basic receiving equipment can gather the same RFID tag information that is compiled by your enterprise’s own warehouse!

Scientists have proposed two different techniques for addressing the enterprise eavesdropping problem. One, proposed by researchers at MIT, is known as silent tree-walking. Silent tree-walking involves a modification to the basic reading protocol for RFID tags that eliminates reader broadcast of tag data.

A second technique, proposed by RSA® Laboratories, involves the use of pseudonyms. In this proposal, tags carry multiple identifiers, and emit different identifiers at different times. Thus the appearance of a tag is changeable. Legitimate readers are capable of recognizing different identifiers belonging to a single RFID tag. An eavesdropper, however, is not. Pseudonyms can prevent an adversary from unauthorized tracking of RFID-tagged objects.

see more discussion at Bruce Schneier's blog

if you can't beat 'em join 'em, and get an RFID tag implanted in your body:
GetChipped or VeriChip

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