"Researchers at the Black Hat conference in Las Vegas earlier this month showed how RFID tags could be read and copied to a smart card, which in turn could be used to make a fake passport. Such issues could pose massive security risks"

Hello! Is this thing on? Which part of that statement don't these brainiacs don't understand? When will the general public get outraged enough to put a stop to this type irresponsible behavior? Hey! I know...if we wrap the passports in duct tape and plastic sheeting that should slow down any potential risk!

Plain RFID cards can be read easily. Encrypted can't as easily. ie. Does the cost/benifit factor justify trying to crack it?. If it can be done cheaply then criminals will do it. Otherwise, they'll move along.

OMG. You Americans are being tagged like sheep...SCAAAAARY!

The encryption on the RFID used in these passports sucks. It has been hacked, fortunately, the guy who did it hasn't released how.

Only a matter of time.

UK has them as an option, so umm, no, I'm not paying extra for something which is far easier to counterfeit.

I agree with Journeyman WebGizmos.I don't agree with Citizen SirSmiley.I do agree with cybermessiah and I do agree with Septimus. One,Uncle Sam will do and say whatever it takes to do his own thing.If there are bucks involved you can bet your ass he will. Criminals don't care about cost, if it is worth it to them as is so often the case, they'll do it, simple as that.Uncle Sam says a whole helluva lot but, when push comes to shove, how many times has he been so wrong and how many people are going to be hurt needlessly. His track record speaks for itself.Want proof, read the paper or check out the histories. Even Uncle Sam can not argue with a matter of public knowledge. Sign me disgusted.

The Oz Gov't wants to bring in national identity card with similar features...a card that must be produced to obtain any gov't service....even some semi-gov't and non-govt services. Seems to me, if they can be that easily hacked, a lot of Social Security and tax fraud will abound....people stealing others identities to claim SS benifits in multiple names, etc. Again, the honest and innocent will be the greatest losers.

No matter how sophisticated gov'ts think they are, there'll always be an equally sophisticated criminal element just itching to find new ways to outsmart them.

Personally, given the way justice systems all over have become far too soft, I'd have gov'ts spending the money on much harsher penalties and deterrents....public floggings, stonings, loss of body parts and executions to make crims think more than twice/thrice before committing a crime. Barbaric? Maybe, but it has to be better than the lawless and chaotic direction we're heading because of do-gooders and pathetic, gutless pollies.

They talked about the national identity card here in Canada but, it looks like it may violate the Charter of Rights & Freedoms. I have no problem with biometrics and my eye is scanned everytime I enter the US anyway...although it is flawed too.

I don't know why the passpot needs to be RFID. A card with magnetic strip could do the job just as well with three layers of security in place (physical card, mag strip, encryption) instead of broadcasting data for anyone who wanted to pick it up.

I wonder how much the RFID manufacturer lobbyists paid to Congress.

They talked about the national identity card here in Canada but, it looks like it may violate the Charter of Rights & Freedoms.

Here in Oz our rights and freedoms are being eroded on a daily basis....so in the end, the Oz Gov't be be able to rightfully argue that such measures do not infringe upon human rights, cos there are none....

The basic rights and conditions of Oz workers have been nullified by new industrial legislation. In fact, because they were invited by the gov't and big business, we have imported migrant workers who have better conditions/rights than our own, so-say because they're strangers in a foreign land and therefore should be given special consideration. That sucks, particularly when we have so many unemployed Aussies, yet the migrant workers continue to stream in. How times have changed! I was a migrant here 35/6 years ago...and I was given bugger all, special considerations or otherwise.

The legislation regarding families has been amended, repealed and pulled apart every which way including loose to deny parents their parental rights and responsibilities. In essence, then, we have government encouraging and assisting kids as young as 10 to divorce their parents and run away from home so they can do as they please. It's downright criminal what they've done to betray a whole generation of kids and their parents, but still they sit in their ivory towers ignoring the chaos and devastation they've created.

It's not law as yet, but we are now being told that we must not smoke in our own homes if we have children. The same consideration, I've heard, is being given to in-home alcohol consumption. To prevent a future generation of alcoholics? What's next....having to send our kids over to friends houses if we want to make love, just in case they listen or walk in and learn about the birds and bees?

So but how long before will it become LAW...gov'ts telling us what we can and can't do in our own homes? The day when a man's home was his castle will soon have gone the way of the wild frontier. The way I see it, we're being over-controlled more each day and under-governed by the hour....meaning that governments are constantly seeking ways to withdraw more and more services we really need for ones we don't, would rather not have.