RFID Zapper

Easy, cheap, portable way to fry RFID tags: Rfiddler

Original article here.

"The gun was fabricated using a Nerf N-Strike Recon CS-6, with a 0.6 kilojoule camera flash driving a 50-turn copper spool."

It seems simple enough.

Implications:
1) Easy theft - "disappear" tagged items.
2) Easy impersonation - no interference from existing tags.

Applications:
Commercialisation on the grey market for use by crime syndicates: firstly, stealing from RFID-automated warehouses and dispatch centres; secondly, re-routing shipped items; thirdly, changing tariffs on shipped items; fourthly, clearing shipping containers illegally; fifthly, passport/ID disabling.

Moral of the story: beware taking the human out of the decision loop because you never know when they will become necessary again.