From: Kim.Sassaman@cox.com
Date: Tue May 11 2004 - 14:05:13 EDT
I think there could be some practical uses of RFID tags if they were more along the lines of smart cards and employed a layer of encryption or the use of digital signatures. More over anything that is physical in nature i.e. worn or carried has a huge loss potential. Implanted devices of course are not very practical at all. For basic tracking of products within a zone these serve their purpose. Facilities should have some sort of safe guard that once the tag leaves the premises the tag is then made null and no longer will respond. One has to think of the practical use of the technology. Are you as a company wanting to a. Track inventory? b. Reduce loss of assets? c. Track individuals? Depending on the need you have to then of course introduce the most cost effective method to address that need. Unfortunately that is the way business's approach security and most every other business decission, cost, cost, cost.
Kim Sassaman
CISSP
-----Original Message-----
From: James Hester [mailto:jay.hester@mci.com]
Sent: Tuesday, May 11, 2004 9:51 AM
To: stuart@cyberdelix.net; tim@labmonkey.co.uk
Cc: pen-test@securityfocus.com
Subject: RE: RFID Tags
You run the same risks with using a computer or storing data on any device,
including pen and paper. A tag id by itself is worthless unless you know
exactly what data is stored on it.
A RFid tag has big limitations too, once you chop off part of the antenna
it's worthless. The physics of radio waves limits that.
You can't be tracked "everywhere" you go. It's not cost affective at all. A
tag will transmit around 9 feet.
Battery powered tags are to expensive now to be put on individual items.
Tags can be shut down (killed) in a second with a reader. That is one way to
stop tracking. Privacy groups and doomsday speakers should concentrate more
on having companies shut off the tags when they are done tracking them (sold
from wal-mart) then scaring the general public.
Instead of fearing new technology, how about working with it to find the
best ways to use it?
Tech. improves every day, either we can work with it, or fight it and go
back to the stone age. I would rather work with it so I can have the
challenge of security then not have advancements at all.
Jay
-----Original Message-----
From: lsi [mailto:stuart@cyberdelix.net]
Sent: Tuesday, May 11, 2004 3:50 AM
To: tim@labmonkey.co.uk
Cc: pen-test@securityfocus.com
Subject: Re: RFID Tags
I read about some theoretical attacks on RFID:
- unauthorised usage: Black Hat walks onto train with rogue ID
sniffer, gets IDs of all tags in the carriage - this info might be
used to compute the relative value of each commuter's clothes and
belongings, and their origins. If RFIDs go into drivers licenses,
passports etc, then the presence of those documents will be revealed
without a search. If the RFIDs go into credit cards, Black Hat will
know how many, and which ones, you have. And if RFIDs go into cash,
then Black Hat will know how much you're carrying.
- replay attack: sniff a tag's ID, then later, play it back to the
detector and impersonate that tag
"Security professionals need to realize that RFID tags are dumb
devices. They listen, and they respond. Currently, they don't care
who sends the signal. Anything your companies' transceiver can
detect, the bad guy's transceiver can detect. So don't be lulled into
a false sense of security." --
http://www.securityfocus.com/columnists/169
Stuart
On 10 May 2004 at 19:04, Timothy Marshall wrote:
Send reply to: <tim@labmonkey.co.uk>
From: "Timothy Marshall" <tim@labmonkey.me.uk>
To: <pen-test@securityfocus.com>
Subject: RFID Tags
Date sent: Mon, 10 May 2004 19:04:35 +0800
Organization: Labmonkey.co.uk
> Hi,
>
> Does anyone have information / experience on how secure these tags are?
Can
> the data they store be changed in anyway? Can they be copied / faked? If
> they are changed can the original information still be read?
>
> Cheers
>
> Tim
>
>
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
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