2017/02/23 by Seita Maruyama, Maruyama, Seita, Satohiro Wakabayashi +3
Computer Science · Engineering · #Cryptography and Security (cs.CR) #Digital and Cyber Forensics #FOS: Computer and information sciences #RFID technology advancements #User Authentication and Security Systems
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1702.07124
openalex publication_date 2017/02/23 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
We present a novel proof-of-concept attack named Trojan of Things (ToT), which aims to attack NFC- enabled mobile devices such as smartphones. The key idea of ToT attacks is to covertly embed maliciously programmed NFC tags into common objects routinely encountered in daily life such as banknotes, clothing, or furniture, which are not considered as NFC touchpoints. To fully explore the threat of ToT, we develop two striking techniques named ToT device and Phantom touch generator. These techniques enable an attacker to carry out various severe and sophisticated attacks unbeknownst to the device owner who unintentionally puts the device close to a ToT. We discuss the feasibility of the attack as well as the possible countermeasures against the threats of ToT attacks.