DIY Personal Info Protection: No Tin-Foil Hat Needed

How many credit/debit/id cards do you have in your wallet? If you're like me, you have at least a driver's license, 1 credit card, 1 atm card, 1 supermarket discount card, and 1 loyalty punch card for Art's Performance Center. Just how safe is that information? Well, probably still not all that likely until RFID technology gets better, but a CBS report last year outlined how someone with an RFID reader that costs less than $100 and a netbook got information from 26 people in less than an hour. Still, there are no confirmed cases of identity or credit card theft happening via these means.

But, in case you are paranoid, or just want a sweet new duct tape wallet, check out this DIY from wired.com. The post outlines how to make a Faraday Cage wallet. For those of you who don't have a background in engineering or neuroimaging, a Faraday Cage in this instance acts as a shield from radio frequency (RF) signals. It's used in the walls of MRI scanner rooms to keep RF noise from interfering with the data. But I digress, back to the wallet. Although it sounds fancy, it's essentially a duct tape wallet that has been lined with aluminum foil. Oh, and apparently this technique can also be used to shoplift items with RFID tags. We don't condone this behavior. I'm looking at you Winona.

Jordan

Jordan is a blogger/scientist/clinician who currently resides in Milwaukee. He dreams of a day when it is socially appropriate for him to scream at children on his lawn. (@NeuroJay).

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