Description:Hardware-Based Security Enhancement for Near Field Communication and Other Close Proximity Inductive-Based Communication Systems

Several hardware-based security improvements to Near Field Communication (NFC) and Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) systems are developed and presented. The improvements are intended to be used in conjunction with software encryption to ensure robust security. Two main implementations for a more secure NFC or RFID system are presented: a jamming system, and a canceler system. Each implementation improves the security of the system by considerably reducing the distance an outside party can eavesdrop from compared to a standard system. Additionally, each implementation has been shown to be compatible with current NFC standards and specifications. To verify the performance of the security enhancements, full-wave electromagnetic simulations and laboratory experiments were done.

Major Advisor: Andreas Weisshaar
Committee: Arun Natarajan
Committee: Mario Magaña
GCR: Karl Haapala