Choose when the digital info on your chipped passport and credit/ID cards is 'on' or 'off' by making a pouch or wallet that contains radio wave shielding/attenuating materials. This one is constructed from trash bags and cans of high-octane beverages consumed by real hackers.
Wrapping yourself in aluminum foil isn't enough! The kinds of radio waves used with RFID are tricky and can penetrate all sorts of things---it's a matter of power and antenna size. On a quest for a modern-day magic shielding cloth, I discovered how to make an effective, rigid pouch on the cheap.
More technical details on page 21. Non-commercial use only, please. I made a batch for sale, but do not plan to be doing any more production. (There are about 3 left.) My personal motivation for this project was not pouch sales, but was in a sense my way of distributing "free condoms" for your personal info/privacy. Of course, I'm open to other opportunities. Contact me for more info.: saraheartburn (at) gmail (dot) com.
Thanks, have fun, & be safe(r)!
Wrapping yourself in aluminum foil isn't enough! The kinds of radio waves used with RFID are tricky and can penetrate all sorts of things---it's a matter of power and antenna size. On a quest for a modern-day magic shielding cloth, I discovered how to make an effective, rigid pouch on the cheap.
- Holds passport, 4-8 credit cards & moderate amount of folded paper.
- Shields when closed, even when directly on top of readers.
- Cards in can-lined pockets are shielded when pouch is open, also when on reader.
- Inexpensive, readily available materials. Time is most expensive item on this project.
- Pouch design works with the strap worn on the body or without & carried in another bag.
- Shields more than some items currently available for sale.
More technical details on page 21. Non-commercial use only, please. I made a batch for sale, but do not plan to be doing any more production. (There are about 3 left.) My personal motivation for this project was not pouch sales, but was in a sense my way of distributing "free condoms" for your personal info/privacy. Of course, I'm open to other opportunities. Contact me for more info.: saraheartburn (at) gmail (dot) com.
Thanks, have fun, & be safe(r)!
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Signing UpStep 1: Standards and materials for the whole project. BE SAFE.
A. All quantities are listed with a # -- #4 = four pieces
B. All measurements are in INCHES followed by CENTIMETERS IN PARENTHESIS.
Example: #4, 3 3/4 x 1 7/8 (9.6 x 4.8)
C. Any time you're instructed to 'fuse' or 'iron' it is implied that you are doing so BETWEEN two sheets of parchment paper, AND THAT YOU'RE WORKING IN A WELL-VENTILATED AREA! Bre Pettis of Make made an awesome podcast on how to make a messenger bag out of trash bags. It shows in detail how to fuse plastic trash bags together. Watch it! Make a Messenger Bag out of Trash Bags
D. Use a zipper foot for all sewing
E. The photos shown are a collection from making several different pouches. Some of which are before I added the angled pockets to the design.
Gather materials
***EXTREMELY IMPORTANT:*** Ironing or melting any kind of plastic produces toxic fumes that are colorless and often odorless. Do this in a well ventilated area. Well ventilated means a garage with the door open; out on your patio; a large room with a window and door open & fan blowing out the window for generous cross ventilation. Seriously, these fumes can possibly make you very sick or dead. If at any time while you are fusing plastic you feel woozy or headachey stop immediately, and get outside for fresh air. Then increase the ventilation in the area you are working in.
Wear eye protection when you're cutting and filing metal. You should probably wear eye protection when you're sewing around the aluminum. At one point I hit the sheet metal by accident and the needle shattered and hit me in the face.
Always use a sharp blade when cutting. As soon as you have the thought "this is starting to get dull..." replace the blade. The cost of extra blades is much less than a trip to the ER for stitches, and ensures clean edges on your projects. Always be mindful of the position of your hands vs. the potential path of a blade: thumb on ruler, etc. especially when sawing into aluminum cans with a utility knife.
B. All measurements are in INCHES followed by CENTIMETERS IN PARENTHESIS.
Example: #4, 3 3/4 x 1 7/8 (9.6 x 4.8)
C. Any time you're instructed to 'fuse' or 'iron' it is implied that you are doing so BETWEEN two sheets of parchment paper, AND THAT YOU'RE WORKING IN A WELL-VENTILATED AREA! Bre Pettis of Make made an awesome podcast on how to make a messenger bag out of trash bags. It shows in detail how to fuse plastic trash bags together. Watch it! Make a Messenger Bag out of Trash Bags
D. Use a zipper foot for all sewing
E. The photos shown are a collection from making several different pouches. Some of which are before I added the angled pockets to the design.
Gather materials
- Black trash bags--(Husky brand) heavy duty 'construction cleanup'
- Clear trash can liners of the same size --(Husky brand)
- Aluminum cans
- Aluminum sheet metal .032 (.08) thick
- Box cutter utility knife w/strong blade
- Xacto knife and No. 11 blades, or blades of that shape
- Straight edge
- Cutting surface (self-healing mat or thick cardboard)
- Strong utility shears or tin snips
- Scissors
- Medium grain sand paper
- Medium file
- Iron & ironing board
- Parchment paper, the kind used for baking
- Sewing machine with medium to heavy duty needle, zipper foot. Intermediate sewing skills are very helpful.
- 3/4" (2) wide Velcro. Self-adhesive is great for positioning.
- 1/2" (1.3) or 1" (2.5) wide masking or other paper tape
- Black electrical tape
- 60" (153cm) of 1/8" (.32) thick screening spline (looks cool with the fused black plastic) or any kind of cord for a strap
- band saw
- mini iron--used for applique ironing
- block for sand paper
- The clear trash can liners could be optional. You wouldn't be able to see the cans you used--which is a fun design element and also makes it much easier when you're stitching the pockets. Flip the can over so that no printing is showing if you are offended by logos, etc.
***EXTREMELY IMPORTANT:*** Ironing or melting any kind of plastic produces toxic fumes that are colorless and often odorless. Do this in a well ventilated area. Well ventilated means a garage with the door open; out on your patio; a large room with a window and door open & fan blowing out the window for generous cross ventilation. Seriously, these fumes can possibly make you very sick or dead. If at any time while you are fusing plastic you feel woozy or headachey stop immediately, and get outside for fresh air. Then increase the ventilation in the area you are working in.
Wear eye protection when you're cutting and filing metal. You should probably wear eye protection when you're sewing around the aluminum. At one point I hit the sheet metal by accident and the needle shattered and hit me in the face.
Always use a sharp blade when cutting. As soon as you have the thought "this is starting to get dull..." replace the blade. The cost of extra blades is much less than a trip to the ER for stitches, and ensures clean edges on your projects. Always be mindful of the position of your hands vs. the potential path of a blade: thumb on ruler, etc. especially when sawing into aluminum cans with a utility knife.
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Well...I think it's been 2 years maybe? I FINALLY actually did it, even though the metal pieces have been cut this whole two years. So here is my interpretation:
Also? I love the goggles in your profile pic. Shiny!
yay, someone made my pouch!
I'd love to hear how it works after you're out and about.
Thanks for posting. what a treat :-)
potato chip bags are made of mylar — one of the materials tested during the prototype stage. mylar was found to attenuate cell phone signals, but the frequencies for RFID are lower and the tests i did showed the mylar had little effect. the lowest possible cell phone signal tested was 900MHz (using the phones of friends, etc--american phones.) the goal was to block the most common frequency used for RFID tags = 13.56MHz. the mylar had unmeasurable/unnoticable effect on those tags and the even lower frequency tags of 125-130KHz like the kind used for pet ID chips. the lower frequencies are tricky. they can penetrate metal, water and even kittens---then again they operate in the "near field" = 1 meter or less.
to answer whether that FBI agent was speaking the truth is tricky. it is very possible that sticking a cel phone in a potato chip bag will attenuate the receiving and emitting signals enough so that it doesn't work. as for "other RF devices", it will depend totally on what frequency the device is operating on.
I got mine at the Penn & Teller store at the Rio in Las Vegas, but there are other sources around.
here's a cute article (scroll down a bit):
http://securityedition.com/category/good-news/
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Shielding
A number of products are available on the market in the US that will allow a concerned carrier of RFID-enabled cards or passports to shield their data. In fact the United States government requires their new employee ID cards to be delivered with an approved shielding sleeve or holder[citation needed]. There are contradicting opinions as to whether aluminum can prevent reading of RFID chips. Some people claim that aluminum shielding, essentially creating a Faraday cage, does work.[59] Others claim that simply wrapping an RFID card in aluminum foil, only makes transmission more difficult, yet is not completely effective at preventing it.[60]
Shielding is again a function of the frequency being used. Low-frequency tags, like those used in implantable devices for humans and pets, are relatively resistant to shielding, though thick metal foil will prevent most reads. High frequency tags (13.56 MHz — smart cards and access badges) are more sensitive to shielding and are difficult to read when within a few centimetres of a metal surface. UHF tags (pallets and cartons) are very difficult to read when placed within a few millimetres of a metal surface, although their read range is actually increased when they are spaced 2–4 cm from a metal due to positive reinforcement of the reflected wave and the incident wave at the tag. UHF tags can be successfully shielded from most reads by being placed within an anti-static plastic bag.
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Researchers at two security conferences have demonstrated that passive UHF RFID tags, not of the HF type used in US passports, normally read at ranges of up to 30 feet, can be read at ranges of 50 to 69 feet using suitable equipment.[64][6
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The potential for privacy violations with RFID was demonstrated by its use in a pilot program by the Gillette Company, which conducted a "smart shelf" test at a Tesco in Cambridge, England. They automatically photographed shoppers taking RFID-tagged safety razors off the shelf, to see if the technology could be used to deter shoplifting. This trial resulted in consumer boycott against Gillette and Tesco. In another incident, uncovered by the Chicago Sun-Times, shelves in a Wal-Mart in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, were equipped with readers to track the Max Factor Lipfinity lipstick containers stacked on them. Webcam images of the shelves were viewed 750 miles (1200 km) away by Procter & Gamble researchers in Cincinnati, Ohio, who could tell when lipsticks were removed from the shelves and observe the shoppers in action.[citation needed]
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Since the above information are only segments it might be said by some that they are out of context, so if you wish to read the other surrounding information, please go to:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rfid
and read it all, including a huge number of references containing additional data.
BTW, great work on the research, construction, and testing!