[ridgeguy]

It seems there are RFID tags that provide sensing functions. I didn't do a deep dive, here's the first thing I found. [1] They sense temperature, pressure, and other parameters. I wouldn't be surprised if something like this is used by tire makers.

[1] https://www.atlasrfidstore.com/sensor-rfid-tags/

[valianteffort]

But RFID are unique, read-only keys burned in to silicon at time of production.

Perhaps the car is using Wi-Fi for TPMS.

[mh-]

They don't use Wi-Fi.

There's a small battery-powered device mounted inside the tire, attached to the valve stem.

In regular passenger vehicles, it's usually woken up regularly by a signal from the car. It takes sensor readings, and transmits them back to the car (using that region's unlicensed UHF bands).

I imagine Formula teams may have need for greater frequency of sensor data, so there could be some variations here, but that's broadly how it works. In a passenger car, the battery outlives the tire.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Direct_TPMS

[entropie]

Thanks for the explanation.

> In regular passenger vehicles

So this system gets abused in sports. I wonder if there are applications in the real world (like tracking of movement of (individual) cars).

[reaperducer]

So this system gets abused in sports. I wonder if there are applications in the real world (like tracking of movement of (individual) cars).

It's already done. When you drive into a parking lot, or go through a restaurant drive-through, your tires may already be scanned and your information sold.

It doesn't take much to corollate a person using the same credit card more than once at a store with the transmitted IDs of their tires in the parking lot, and then follow that person, via their tires, from place to place as they shop, do errands, visit an abortion clinic, etc.

[flangola7]

How do you prevent this

[reaperducer]

Cash, and transit. That's about it.