Make Your Own RFID Tag Sniffer
November 18th, 2008 by miked
Hacking radio frequeny identification (RFID) has been gaining popularity due its increased usage. There have been several great RFID projects over the last couple of years (RFID skimmer and RFID Racket Reader to name a few). You can even pick RFID experimental kits from Sparkfun, ThinkGeek or eBay.
Marc Boon made a DIY RFID card sniffer and documented everything from concept to build. You can use the sniffer to find RFID tags hidden in your favorite cards and fobs. This is easy to reproduce and you can even buy a kit if you desire. <via Cool Circuits>
Posted in rf & rfid |
November 20th, 2008 at 2:29 pm
Cool hack.
I wish people wouldn’t overstate the risks of things though. It leads to intelligent but uninformed people to become skeptical.
From the writeup: “Carrying tagged objects with you can reveal your identity or whereabouts to anyone equipped with the appropiate tools to read RFID tags.”
Yes. Carrying tagged objects can reveal your identity, but the other party needs both a reader *and* a database to cross reference against.
Yes, you can be tracked by RFID, but it’s unlikely to ever happen, because you need a *vast array* of readers and a database to cross reference. Anybody snooping an RFID that you’re carrying around without you knowing almost certainly knows your whereabouts, sure… But not because of the RFID… Because they’re probably within a few yards of you, and within line of sight.