credit card details can be 'stolen out of thin air'

[GlassSteagallfan]

Your card details are 'stolen out of thin air': Information could be 'robbed by radiowave' thanks to new contactless technology

Millions of credit and debit card users could be ‘robbed by radiowave’ because of new contactless technology being brought in by banks.

Almost 20million shoppers are now able to buy goods by simply waving their card in front of a reader at the tills, even if it is still in a wallet or a purse.

But industry experts have warned that the information emitted by the cards can be stolen by fraudsters using handheld receptors that cost as little as £7 on the internet.

It means cardholders – most of whom are given a contactless card automatically when their old one expires – can unknowingly surrender their personal bank details to a thief by simply walking past them in the street.


Read the rest at: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2137106/Your-card-details-stolen-air-Information-robbed-radiowave-thanks-new-contactless-technology.html


Interesting comment at the above article:

I too have tried, today, to change back to a normal card and have been told that I cannot. If your card has a ) ) ) ) symbol on the front then your credit card has RFID capability.
- JohnT, UK, 30/4/2012 16:35

[Whiskey_Mystic]

Travelsmith and U.S Cavalry both sell anti theft wallets to prevent this. They aren't expensive, either.

Now imagine the difficulty of trying to prevent hackers from accessing your brand new embedded chip.

[ThePythonicCow]

Now imagine the difficulty of trying to prevent hackers from accessing your brand new embedded chip.So that's why we need tin foil hats (to prevent theives from hacking our chip) !