RFID: Give Out Your Credit Card Info As You Walk Around Town !
The thieves no longer have to physically ‘pick your pocket’ to steal your wallet’s credit card and personal information. The new RFID technology used in the plastic card (not all cards use RFID yet) may be transmitting that financial & personal info right now from your pocket or purse.
Millions of today’s new credit cards and IDs, including the new US Government’s e-passports are RFID.
As Wikipedia tells us: Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is an automatic identification method, relying on storing and remotely retrieving data using devices called RFID tags or transponders. An RFID tag is an object that can be attached to or incorporated into a product, animal, or person for the purpose of identification using radio waves. Chip-based RFID tags contain silicon chips and antennas.
RFID technology allows the cardholder to ‘pass’ his card over the reader within a centimeter or so and the transaction is paid. The personal information such as name & card number, is sent and received via radio frequency to the reader thus making any sales transaction much more convenient and super fast.
You know that great TV commercial…where they guy running the marathon takes half a second & passes his MasterCard over the store’s reader and with drink in hand runs out of the 7-11 back into first place of the NYC marathon? RFID cards are so fun, easy and fast to use :-)
Now the one thing they don’t tell you is that when you put that card back into your pants, wallet, thong or purse, it can still transmit your info!
Or maybe they do mention it in the small print but they don’t include it in the cool TV ad. Consequently, when you are taking the subway home or anywhere in close proximity with others, if you are close enough to any reader, including a home made portable one, they are also easily reading the same financial and personal information.
There is no ‘on/off’ switch for these cards.
Interesting isn’t it? A guy walks behind you on the subway car with a briefcase brushing close to your wallet and the next day is out shopping on your accounts.
Well I’m here today to tell you just how you can now protect yourself from this type of theft with the new datasafe™ wallets. The DataSafe leather RFID wallets – which include men and women wallet designs – uses a patent-pending shielding material – similar to that used in the U.S. State Department’s new E-Passports – to protect your personal information! These wallets feature beautiful leather, fine craftsmanship but most importantly up to FIFTEEN (15) Layers of RF Shielding Material!
No chance of that guy on the subway getting any information from this wallet or credit card. These leather wallets come in a variety of styles and colors. To see the full collection…
For the man in your life:
Features:
- Up to SEVEN (7) Layers of RF Shielding Material
- Flip-Up EZ-Access Panel
- 10 Card Slots
- 2 Full-Length Bill/Cash Sections
- Windowed License Panel
- Lifetime Warranty
For the pretty lady in your life:
Features:
- Beautiful Black Nappa Leather
- Up to FIFTEEN (15) Layers of RF Shielding Material
- 19 Card Slots
- 5 Slots for Business Cards and/or Receipts
- 1 Cash Pocket
- 1 Zippered Coin Pocket
- Lifetime Warranty
The new DataSafe™ Wallet collection which is now shipping makes a great stocking stuffer.
I wrote a couple of quick posts on the RFID topic some months back:
Are your credit cards safe?
Hacker Cracks and Clones the new US Gov. ‘e-passport’ ie. the RFID Passport
As a follow up on this story, one reader wrote in asking some technical stuff in the comments area. The questions were sent directly to the manufacturer of the wallets and his reply can the next morning including technical information so I have published it here:
(Q) “”Have any of the wallets finished wallet designs been tested (not just the RF material used) also for what frequencies, and are the test results available to the consumer?”"
(A) Mark -
Many thanks for the post and your support! The wallets have certainly been tested, but it’s a very good question as there are intricacies involved in using this material that need to be overcome for better effectiveness. For instance, just sewing this fabric causes small holes in the material that actually deteriorate the shielding effectiveness. This is why we filed a patent for our design with multiple layers — in some models up to 15 layers of the material — as additional protection. There are other wallets out there that only use a single layer in the lining but we found that this just was not effective enough, especially when you’re talking about protecting someone’s identity and/or credit card information!
You can literally lay one of these DataSafe Wallets on a contactless reader with contactless credit cards inside and it will not be able to read them. It’s as if they are not there.
Below is some of the testing data that we have done.
Just as a bit of a follow up I just read…let’s see how it goes.
US Bank has announced that it is beginning a pilot of contactless cards in Denver – saying that “a group of U.S. Bank customers in the Denver area will soon be able to use a new “contactless” feature with their U.S. Bank Visa Credit Cards that allows them to quickly pay for purchases by holding their card in very close proximity to a secure reader at checkout instead of swiping it or handing it to a cashier.”
It isn’t the number of shielding layers that matters. Nor is it “RF” Shielding that is the primary criteria. “RFID” is a different protocol covering specific frequencies per the tag, reader and antenna dynamics. The important issue about these wallets is 1)the design of each one, and 2)has each finished wallet design been tested (not just the RF material used)for what frequencies, and are the test results available to the consumer. Without such knowledge the consumer is give false hope and may still be at risk. Ask the manufacturer for these important test results – if they exist. Otherwise…
I sent your questions to the manufacturer and got a prompt response, it is posted with the technical info in the actual original post (more…) or here is the text part:
Mark -
Many thanks for the post and your support! The wallets have certainly been tested, but it’s a very good question as there are intricacies involved in using this material that need to be overcome for better effectiveness. For instance, just sewing this fabric causes small holes in the material that actually deteriorate the shielding effectiveness. This is why we filed a patent for our design with multiple layers — in some models up to 15 layers of the material — as additional protection. There are other wallets out there that only use a single layer in the lining but we found that this just was not effective enough, especially when you’re talking about protecting someone’s identity and/or credit card information!
You can literally lay one of these DataSafe Wallets on a contactless reader with contactless credit cards inside and it will not be able to read them. It’s as if they are not there.
Below is some of the testing data that we have done.
http://digitalmoneyworld.com/rfid-give-out…..102
As a fashion enthusiast, I’m disapointed in the design of these wallets, as well as the variety. Some men prefer Tri-Fold wallets instead of Zipper wallets, and Bi-Fold wallets. Being a man, I want to point out that these wallets need more of a variety. To be truthful I wanted to buy a data-safe wallet, but I wanted to buy one that was a tri-fold, despite the design; as long as it was a tri-fold. Maybe I would’ve bought a bi-fold, but like I said I’m enthusiastic when it comes to fashion.
this rfid technology for use as a payment method is an open door for fraud and identity theft. I can not believe that banks are willing to issue credit cards with this feature. Also suppose someone has more than 1 credit card with this technology how does one decide which card to use without disclosing all cards to the merchant. I see no point in needing to use a credit card 30 feet from the register. might as well swipe the card manually.
I think the prudent thing to do is remove or damage this chip in the credit cards. As far as the wallet goes, I’m not too crazy about the styles and I prefer the thinnest possible wallet since I carry many cards.