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by amyames 513 days ago
Oh and I only have to give my identity to Alipay and Chinese transit? And modify my phone so it consistently beacons out a trackable ID?
2 comments
londons_explore 513 days ago
It isn't beaconing out a trackable ID unless one manages to get into NFC range, which isn't gonna be read from miles away
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yencabulator 513 days ago
10 meters is plenty to covertly track you entering/leaving a building.

> The distance from which an attacker is able to eavesdrop the RF signal depends on multiple parameters, but is typically less than 10 meters.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Near-field_communication

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lxgr 513 days ago
Eavesdrop, but not initiate a transaction. I definitely wouldn't want to be in the same room as an active ISO 14443 antenna capable of powering up even low-powered tags/cards from 10 meters. That would be a lot of power!

That said, Apple devices use an active amplifier even in card emulation mode (which is why Apple Pay works considerably more reliably at awkward angles than Google Pay does on most Android phones).

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lxgr 513 days ago
Yes, but let's be clear: You have Apple to thank for it.

Android has supported HCE-based card emulation and provided access to any app developer out there for a decade now. No special entitlement, certification, or licensing fee required.

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behnamoh 513 days ago
> Android has supported HCE-based card emulation and provided access to any app developer out there for a decade now. No special entitlement, certification, or licensing fee required.

but Apple doesn't do it for "privacy and security" reasons (read: they want iron grip on their closed ecosystem).

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