Protect your RFID charge cards.

I bought an RFID blocking wallet…and so should you. RFID is an acronym. It stands for radio-frequency identification (RFID), which “uses electromagnetic fields to automatically identify and track tags attached to objects. The tags contain electronically stored information,” according to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio-frequency_identification. These tags are commonly found in clothing, merchandise and charge cards.

How they work in charge cards.

Perhaps you’ve seen Apple Pay and other touch-less payment scenarios. You walk up to a terminal, let the terminal scan your charge card and then complete payment. Pretty convenient, right? It is if you’re in a secure environment. It is if you can guarantee nobody else will get close to you and scan your charge cards.

Why you should be careful.

That is the issue. A scammer can walk around a mall, movie theater or other crowded place, pull out his RFID reader and scan your wallet at random. He will harvest your charge card numbers. He will harvest more from other unsuspecting victims. His job is easy. Just go somewhere crowded. His intentions are criminal. Steal charge card numbers. He can save that list of charge cards as an Excel spreadsheet and sell it on the black market. He could also use those charge cards to make fraudulent purchases. You and other innocent people become identity theft victims.

The solution.

Get yourself a new wallet that blocks RFID traffic. When you put your charge cards in the wallet, you protect them from RFID readers. Someone standing next to you trying to probe your wallet will not see your charge cards. He will have better luck reading charge card numbers from those who do not have these secure wallets. My RFID blocking wallet cost $6 on eBay. Rather low cost for the big benefit, wouldn’t you say?