Improved security

Three scientists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst have devised a way to improve the security of radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags, the wireless devices that ,amongst other things, allow consumers to access buildings without pulling out their wallets.

Their work is part of a multi-disciplinary collaboration among cryptographers and engineers, called the RFID Consortium for Security and Privacy (RFID-CUSP), a research initiative funded by a $1.1m grant from the National Science Foundation to improve security for the wireless “smart tag” industry.

'We believe we’re the first to show how a common existing circuit can both identify specific tags and protect their data,' said university researcher Wayne Burleson.

Embedded in RFID tags are passive systems that respond automatically to electromagnetic fields produced by radio antennas trying to read the tags’ memory. This technology, while convenient, can be susceptible to breaches in security. Credit cards that use RFID technology are vulnerable to thieves who, with the appropriate equipment, can read information from the card without the victim ever taking it out of a pocket.