wilamowski-b-m-irwin-j-d-industrial-communication-systems-2011

Radio Frequency Identification 8-5
8.4 Smart Card
Every sword has two blades. The ability to write and rewrite implies that the personal record of its bearer
is vulnerable to unauthorized alterations. Addressing this issue, a microprocessor chip with a sizable
memory is embedded in a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) card because the said polymer is cheap, durable, and
easy to assemble at a relatively low temperature. Using the old-fashioned write-once memory, top security
could be obtained because the data stored in this type of memory cannot be altered. Alternatively,
specially designed software could be used to protect the data from external hacking. Short of absolute
security, the latter method is tamper resistant.
The microprocessor-controlled memory could be used in conjunction with the magnetic
stripe. With or without a magnetic stripe, it is called a smart card. Although the first version was
unveiled by Helmut Gröttrup and Jürgen Dethloff for SEL (Standard Elektrik Lorenz) in 1968, the
smart card remains very popular 4 decades later as most credit cards in our wallets belong to this
category.
With significant progress made in the mass production of semiconductor devices in recent
years, the price of EPROMs (erasable programmable read-only memory), E-EPROMs (rewritable
EPROM), or flash memories is dropping very fast. Thus, a memory of 1024.kB or more could be
found in many smart cards; therefore, many new features are made possible. For example, a highresolution
image of its bearer could be included for authentication. One may also choose to download
one’s resume, medical record, and other information, such as the name of the physician and
the date of the last visit in an eye-catching card such that erroneous blood transfusion and the prescription
of allergic medicine could be reduced, especially when the bearer is knocked unconscious
after an accident.
By incorporating a proprietary hardware onboard, cryptographic smart cards could be used in topsecurity
transactions by providing a digital signature. For example, it is adopted for interbank fund
transfers, as in the electronic payment system (EPS) in Hong Kong. It could also be used in money withdrawals
and cash deposits via an autoteller machine (ATM). With additional reconfirmation through
various biofeatures, such as fingerprint and face recognition, smart cards could be used at border control.
For example, a resident in Hong Kong could clear the immigration process between the Hong Kong
Special Administrative Region (SAR) and Mainland China through the “e-way” in less than 7.s or 5.s in
the upgraded version.
A boom in smart card use came in 1990 after it was packaged into the form of a subscriber identity
module (SIM) card for the GSM mobile phone in Europe (Figure 8.5). Besides mobile phones, SIM cards
are extensively used in video games, software licenses, and for watching premium movies on a highdefinition
television (HDTV) format at home.
(a)
(b)
FIGURE 8.5
(a) SIM card and (b) GSM telephone card.
© 2011 by Taylor and Francis Group, LLC