[15729] in cryptography@c2.net mail archive
Re: EZ Pass and the fast lane ....
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Elliott Frank)
Sat Jul 10 11:50:42 2004
X-Original-To: cryptography@metzdowd.com
X-Original-To: cryptography@metzdowd.com
Date: Fri, 09 Jul 2004 19:41:27 -0700
From: Elliott Frank <esfrank@cruzio.com>
To: <cryptography@metzdowd.com>
In-Reply-To: <p06110403bd0c89d2c0b8@[66.149.49.5]>
FasTrak is a passive system relative to the transponder -- it uses the
transponder ID, a vehicle sensor, and an axle counter to generate toll
records. The associated license plate capture-and-decode feature is only
invoked if a non-transponder-equipped or invalidated-transponder-equipped
vehicle attempts to use a transponder-controlled lane or toll booth. Its
primary purpose is to provide sufficient information for a CHP officer to
stop the offending vehicle. The original FasTrak design couldn't handle an
invalidated transponder: it assumed that all correctly-formatted responses
were from valid devices.
Most of the automated toll systems were designed in an era of expensive
processing and centralized databases: if the toll collection point can
generate a formatted record that can be subsequently processed for billing
purposes, that was sufficient functionality.
Social engineering of automated toll systems may have already arrived: as
long as the dollar amounts of the abuse lie within the noise factor of the
victim's bill (e.g., a limousine service or a trucking company) the issue of
retrofitting encryption to provide 'sufficient protection' will not be
raised.
Elliott
---------------------------------------------------------------------
The Cryptography Mailing List
Unsubscribe by sending "unsubscribe cryptography" to majordomo@metzdowd.com
