06 February, 2006
category: RFID
“Westhues was able to read and copy her chip in around two hours, using a simple reader about the size of an MP3 player, with an antenna about five inches long. Once Westhues cloned the chip, he’d be able to use it for anything Newitz used it for. If she were using the chip to unlock her front door – or the door to the biohazard lab – Westhues, if he was a bad guy instead of a hardware and software designer, would be able to do some damage.
Westhues’ quick cloning of Newitz’s chip gives the lie to sunny views of RFID security.”