Intellectual Property Law

California followed Washington State's footsteps this week to become the second U.S. state outlawing so-called Radio Frequency Identification Device skimming.

Skimmers can easily pilfer information from non-encrypted RFID tags that are growing commonplace. California's bill was adopted and signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger this week after a demonstration showed that personal information skimmed from entry-card badges from statehouse workers allowed hackers access to secured areas of government offices.

The legislation came a year after the hacking of the  RFID-enabled Dutch passport, and the successful hacks of the Exxon Mobile key fob and the exposed VeriChip human RFID implant

Still, California's measure (.pdf) and the one Washington State adopted in March, don't mandate any RFID encryption. So the vulnerabilities of the Golden State statehouse's entry system remains.

Photo: joebeone