They were told it was a bad idea.

[unixronin]

RFID passports, that is.  Little better supporting reason for actually implementing the scheme, due to go into service in the US in 2007 or 2008, has been given besides "because we can".

Well, it is reported (via schneier) that a year before the new RFID passports even enter service, someone has already figured out how to clone them, and demonstrated the technique today at the BlackHat hacker conference.  He says it only took him two weeks to figure it out, based solely on publicly available specifications of the ICAO standard, and tested the attack against a new EU German passport.

Comments

[koyote.livejournal.com]

npr had a report a few days ago about the most recent justification.

apparently the GAO sent 18 americans around with "fake" papers, to try and "sneak" across the border, They were largely (this time entirely) successful, and this is proof that we need to require passports for all americans.

I cannot even begin the describe the issues with the operation. Some of it is classic dumbass stupidity. apparently it is a security FAILURE to allow an American with a legal, accurate, but recently expired passport back into the country from Canadia, for example.

Man, those terrorists, sneaky bastards. Who ever would have thought that they'd be looking to impersonate americans with expired passports!

And so on. It's total lunacy, but one of the excuses being used to push the idea.

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

But we think the administration thinks that terrorists are too stupid, or too afraid of water, to use a privately owned boat. What is WRONG with these people? Hell, the last (and so far, only) time we caught a terrorist slipping into the US from Canada, he DID come in by boat.

[ithildae.livejournal.com]

We told them about electronic voting machines too, what good did it do?

I just renewed my passport, partly because of this particular idiocy. Ten years before I need to get it replaced. Hopefully by then the idiots will have found something else to hyperventilate about.