p2pnet - rss feed: Anti-RFID wallet
p2p news / p2pnet: RFID is short for Radio Frequency Identification. It seems innocuous enough but, like any kind of tracking technology, it carries a tremendous potential for civil rights and privacy abuses, particularly where repressive regimes and governments are concerned.
RFID products can be camouflaged up to look like inventory control devices when in reality, what they’re doing, among other things, is collecting information on buyers without their knowledge. And don’t forget that if there’s an RFID ‘inventory’ tag, here’s an excellent chance the product, which is actually a mini data transmitter, will end up in someone’s home, somewhere.
And that’s one of the more innocent applications.
Badges worn by prime ministers, presidents and other high-level officials during the 2003 World Summit on the Information Society conference had secret RFID chips in them; the principal of the California school which ordered students to wear spy-chip ID cards around their necks was disappointed when, thanks to protestations from parents, the project collapsed; and, a South African company says it can pinpoint any UHF RFID tag within read range.
So is there way to protect yourself? Yup, says Dustin Kirk on his duct tape blog.
"With the proliferation of RFID devices and related privacy concerns, it seemed due time to create the RFID Blocking Duct Tape Wallet," he says.
" There are many ways to prevent Radio Frequency ID tags from being transmitted from devices. I often use my work badge and school ID which both contain RFID tags. With drivers licenses, credit cards, and cash now beginning to contain RFID tags, why not create the wallet."
Why not indeed?
Good one, Dustin : )
Also See:
collecting information - RFID ‘really scary technology, October 27, 2005
duct tape blog - NEW RFID Blocking Wallet
December 30th, 2005 at 6:54 pm
I will make one of these to accessorize my tinfoil hat. Hehe j/k.
It is a shame that one has to go to extraordinary means to protect one’s privacy.
December 30th, 2005 at 7:32 pm
“It is a shame that one has to go to extraordinary means to protect one’s privacy.”
This is only the beginning, my friend.
http://revradio.org/movies/ml.wmv
December 31st, 2005 at 2:41 am
I’m sure the cartels will start villifying ppl who use these wallets as “having something to hide” and campaign to get the wallets outlawed.
Hell there probly already is legislation relating to illegally interfering with radio transmission equipment. All they have to do is have a website somewhere in the world stating that if you buy a product that happens to contain an rfid tag you agree that the tag has every right to transmit anything it damn well feels like when it feels like it.
I’m just waiting for the rfid tag maker lobby group to start a “sue em all” campaign to stop ppl “unlawfully interfering with the operation of our products” and coming out with self righteous crap about how “you may have bought a product with an rfid tag in it, but you don’t own the tag and you cannot legally stop it working!”.
December 31st, 2005 at 9:28 am
[quote]
I’m just waiting for the rfid tag maker lobby group to start a “sue em all” campaign to stop ppl “unlawfully interfering with the operation of our products” and coming out with self righteous crap about how “you may have bought a product with an rfid tag in it, but you don’t own the tag and you cannot legally stop it working!”.
[/quote]
Which might be the best thing ever to happen. It would be good thing as people will learn that such dumb laws like this exists ie DMCA. The only reasion that DMCA hasn’t been seriously been talked about being revoked is people are not making a noise in large anouth numbers about such silly laws.
January 3rd, 2006 at 9:39 am
How horribly TRUE!
January 5th, 2006 at 5:58 pm
With un-encrypted RFID the US government is now issuing in Passports we all need to protect ourselves from privacy invasion. Most places on the web say to wrap your wallet in “tin foilâ€. I am sick of hearing that RFID signals are blocked by Aluminum foil. They are not stop believing it. My father in law is a radio engineer and he has to block radio signals all of the time. The best material is Pure Copper which complies with the US government Tempest regulations.
For more information on RFID (spy chips) go to
Http://WWW.SpyChips.com
for a RFID Blocking wallet
HTTP://WWW.DSBSecurity.com