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October 23, 2006
I was hoping they made underwear....
But DIFRWEAR's wallets are looking very practical (probably more practical than this stuff), given today's article in the NYT:
But in tests on 20 cards from Visa, MasterCard and American Express, the researchers here found that the cardholder’s name and other data was being transmitted without encryption and in plain text. They could skim and store the information from a card with a device the size of a couple of paperback books, which they cobbled together from readily available computer and radio components for $150....
And because the cards can be read even through a wallet or an item of clothing, the security of the information, the researchers say, is startlingly weak. “Would you be comfortable wearing your name, your credit card number and your card expiration date on your T-shirt?” Mr. Heydt-Benjamin, a graduate student, asked.
It's true, though, that even RFID-blocking wallets won't address identity and mail theft.
Thanks to the fun@sims mailing list for making the connection.
Posted by egoodman at October 23, 2006 2:27 PM
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