Electronic pick-pocketing alarmingly easy - something for you to worry about .....
Sujit Christy
Electronic pickpocket, something for you to worry about - I have already started to wrorry ..... Check this out
http://www.wreg.com/videobeta/?watchId=8ba6f8fc-90a2-4711-90ea-1884ec348310
It’s called Electronic pick-pocketing and it makes theft look easy. Blame it on new technology being used in credit and debit cards; radio frequency identification technology or RFID. It’s supposed to make purchases faster and easier. You just have to wave the card, and you’ve paid. But technology is also making it easier for thieves to rip you off. "If I'm walking through a crowd, I get near people's back pocket and their wallet…and I can pick up credit card and expiration date on the screen," says Walt Augustinowicz. The technology expert used a credit card reader he bought for $100 online and a netbook computer to demonstrate how easily cards containing RFID can be hacked. Augustinowicz was able to pick up one credit number after another just by walking down the street. "There you go," said Augustinowicz, scanning one willing participant's wallet. "It's a MasterCard," he explained looking at the man's credit card number and expiration date pop up on the screen. He says he can use his computer and card reader to steal credit card numbers, expiration dates and in some cases, even people’s names. And it’s not just your credit and debit cards. All US passports issued since 2006 contain RFID technology that can be read and swiped, giving a criminal access to your date of birth, and your photo—which could be used to make some sort of identification. Fortunately, Augustinowicz is not a criminal, he’s a company owner that markets secure sleeves and wallets designed to block RFID hacking. So FOX 31 wanted to know if Augustinowicz is just trying to scare people into buying his products or if the risk is real. A security expert we consulted said, “I think people do need to be concerned and aware of this, and we’ll see if it becomes a major problem.” Colorado law enforcement officials say they have never seen this particular crime, although there have been cases of card readers being used to steal debit card information from ATMs. Still, Augustinowicz says that may be because people don’t know if they’ve been electronically pick-pocketed—until it’s too late.