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Researchers break Oyster card security system

Wednesday 25 June 2008 14:30 CET | News

Researchers from Radboud University in the Netherlands have cracked the security of the Oyster card deployed for fare payments on buses and tubes in London. Local government body Transport for London (TfL) claims that Oyster cards are secure and personal information is kept separate from journey information. Anyone caught using a cloned card would be prosecuted.

The researchers have succeeded in travelling on the tube, using a cloned card. They reset its credit level with the help of a laptop and caused gates to jam closed. Radboud researcher Wouter Teepe showed evidence on the crack to the Dutch parliament, which has delayed the installation of an automated payment transport system based on the same technology.The Oyster card is a form of electronic ticketing used on Transport for London and some National Rail services in the Greater London area. The card was first issued to the public in 2003. By March 2007 nearly 10 million Oyster cards had been issued and more than 80 percent of journeys on services run by TfL made use of the Oyster card.


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Categories: Payments & Commerce
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Countries: World
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Payments & Commerce