European researchers are to demonstrate it is possible
to insert software viruses into radio frequency identification
(RFID) tracking tags.
At an academic computing conference today in Pisa, Italy, the
researchers plan to demonstrate how it is possible to infect the
tiny memory in the RFID chip.
It was previously thought it was not possible to infect the
memories of RFID chips because they were so small. They sometimes
contain no more than 128 characters.
Already under suspicion as a result of privacy concerns among
potential customers of retail outlets planning to use RFID tags in
their supply chain, use of RFID tracking tags will now face
questions as to whether the data can be manipulated, as a result of
the Pisa demo.
The researchers have also published a list of remedies to
prevent such data manipulation taking place.
If such protection is not adopted, said the researchers, RFID
tracking systems used in the security industry, including at
airports for instance, risk being compromised.
The researchers are from the computer science department at
Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam. They have posted their paper on
the www.rfidvirus.org
website.
The European Commission recently launched a major public
consultation into the use of RFID technology, which will run until
the end of the year.