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Privacy Trap · November 18th 03, 10:36 PM posted to uk.transport.london

Paul Corfield wrote in message . ..
On 18 Nov 2003 03:47:35 -0800, (Matthew) wrote:

I am interested in the mechanics of these cards, which are smart cards
for use on London's transport system. One would hope given the
reported £1billion+ that they are secure.
[snip]
I don't know if the mechanics system of this are documented anywhere,
or have been analyzed by anyone independent, but I am wondering about
the cryptographic approach used for this system.
[snip]

I can see potentially two (or three) ways of doing this system:
[snip]
Any insights better than mine into how the system works, and where
vulnerabilites lie would be welcomed.

Out of curiosity why do you wish to know?

So why don't you simply attempt to board a bus in a zone outside the
validity of your card and see what happens? This is far easier than
divulging the coding and interrogation details of a secure system in a
public forum.

Apparently one of the sub threads got itself crossposted to
alt.2600 :-O. Since when have hackers not divulged the details
of secure systems in public forums?

But just to put your mind at rest I'll include a special sig line
that should attact some attention.

---

' The decline of the nuclear family and the fission of traditonal
communities, has lead to an inertia in the pouplation time-bomb, sex
can now also be used
as a 'weapon of mass destruction' against those that that are seen as
undesirable. All it takes is the suppourt of an extremist faction to
ensure
that a 'massacre'or atorcity of the rights of otherwise inocent lives
is fufilled.